


Save me from the dark

by DiaboloFramboise



Category: Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-25
Updated: 2013-01-29
Packaged: 2017-11-22 10:26:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/608828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DiaboloFramboise/pseuds/DiaboloFramboise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Klaus saves Caroline from Alaric at the school (my own version of the saving, not the show version). She is grateful to him but a little bit emotional after the whole torture thing. Klaus is worried about her and tries to help her get through this. How things could evolve between them from here?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Here's a new Klaroline story which takes place after Alaric tortured Caroline at the school. The story will have 9 chapters all already written so I will update twice a week if there is any interest for the story. 
> 
> English is not my first language so please be nice with the mistakes. 
> 
> I don't own anything in TVD.

In one last desperate move, Klaus managed to snap Alaric's neck.

He immediately turned towards Caroline who was struggling to not cry. Klaus lost no time in undoing her gag, not even paying attention to the burn from the vervain. He knew that Alaric wouldn't be down for a long time. He threw an apologetic look at Caroline before removing the pencil she had in her right hand. Caroline moaned in pain and Klaus felt his heart clench.

"Sorry, love, I have to remove them" he whispered.

Caroline nodded weakly and Klaus did the same thing with the pencil on her other hand. The tears rolling all along her cheeks were making him sick. Klaus gently lifted Caroline up from the chair she was sitting in. He slid an arm behind her shoulders and the other one behind her knees. He then flashed outside the high school and used his hybrid speed to take Caroline as far as possible from there. Without even thinking about it, he took her to the mansion. Alaric didn't have a daylight ring so he was stuck in high school and they should be safe here. At least for now. Caroline was sobbing softly in his chest and the sound was unbearable. Caroline was so strong. So full of light. So full of life. The only sounds escaping her lips should be laughs.

Klaus gently lay Caroline down on the couch. He sat on the edge and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"You are safe here, sweetheart. I promise. Ok?"

Caroline nodded softly, unable to stop the tears rolling along her cheeks. Klaus kept stroking her hair, hating seeing her like this. He gently took one of her hand in his. The wounds were still wide open. Alaric had done a really good job with his wooden pencils soaked in vervain. Klaus' jaw tensed dangerously. Alaric will pay for this. No matter what. Nobody was allowed to hurt Caroline with impunity.

Klaus tenderly wiped her tears with his thumbs. The way Caroline was looking at him was heartbreaking and he stroked her cheeks.

"You need blood Caroline" he said quietly. "You will feel better after." Caroline nodded again, still not trusting herself to talk without bursting into tears.

Klaus hesitated and finally offered her his wrist.

"You should take mine, love. The effect will be faster than from a blood bag."

Caroline looked at him, eyes wide open. He was offering her his blood? He had already done it once but she was dying and it was his only option to save her. But now, he could have given her a blood bag, even if the healing effects will be longer. Why did he care so much about her?

Caroline didn't want to think about it right now. She was way too weak and too sad. It had been horrible to see Ric like this. The torture was even worse when it came from someone you used to know and to trust. Without giving it a second thought, she just accepted Klaus' wrist and sank her fangs into it. The feeling of relief was immediate. She felt his blood course through her veins and her hands stop hurting her instantaneously. Caroline sighed in relief and leant her head back on the couch, suddenly exhausted. Klaus checked her hands again and squeezed them softly when he saw they were completely healed.

"I guess you want to go home now love? I'm going to drive you" Klaus offered.

But Caroline shook her head.

"My mum is working" she whispered weakly. "I don't want to be alone."

Klaus pursued his lips. He could see where the conversation was going and he hated it. But she couldn't be alone tonight so he couldn't be selfish.

"So do you want me to drop you at Tyler's?" he forced himself to ask.

Caroline opened her eyes, genuinely surprised.

"You would do it?" she asked incredulously.

Klaus shrugged.

"I will do it. I don't want you to be alone tonight."

Klaus' voice was steady and confident but he failed to hide the hint of sadness in his eyes and Caroline didn't miss it.

To Klaus' greatest surprise, Caroline shook her head again.

"Can I just stay here for a while?" she whispered very softly.

Klaus couldn't help but show his astonishment. She really wanted to stay here? With him? But Klaus being Klaus, he didn't let his face betray him for too long.

"Of course love, you can stay as much as you want."

"I need to tell my friends I'm okay" Caroline murmured.

"I can do it for you if you want" Klaus offered.

Caroline nodded, and taking her phone out from her pocket, she handed it to him.

"Do you want me to tell that you need some time alone?"

Caroline nodded again and closed her eyes, trying to settle down comfortably on the couch. Klaus hit the "send" button on her phone and suddenly noticed that she was freezing.

"You are not comfortable here Caroline. Please allow me to take you upstairs. You will be better in a bed with some covers."

Caroline didn't hesitate before nodding in approval. She felt so tired and so sad that her mind wasn't really able to process what was happening. Everything seemed so surreal, her whole mind was blurry. Klaus lifted her up from the couch and took her upstairs. He briefly hesitated before heading to his bedroom. He gently lay Caroline down on his bed and removed her shoes and her jacket before wrapping her up in the duvet.

"Try to get some sleep love. You will feel better tomorrow. I'll be in the room across the hall. If you need anything, just call me ok?"

Caroline fluttered her eyes open to look at him. He looked so…concerned. It was odd. Klaus didn't do concern. Without thinking about it, Caroline extended her hand out of the duvet and grabbed his.

"Will you stay with me?" she whispered. "Please?"

Klaus swallowed hard. She looked so vulnerable. He didn't want her to be mad at him in the morning for having taking advantage. But Caroline didn't let go of his hand so he nodded.

"Of course."

He removed his own shoes and jacket and lay down next to her, careful of leaving some space between them. Caroline didn't try to close the gap between them, but she rolled on her side to look at him.

"Why did you do that?" she asked softly.

Klaus frowned.

"Why did I do what?"

"Why did you come to high school to save me, knowing that Ric was way stronger than you and that he could have killed you?" Caroline clarified.

Klaus sighed deeply. He put his arms behind his neck and stared at the ceiling.

"You know why Caroline." he answered with a smile.

But Caroline shook her head.

"No I don't Klaus. What I know is that you spent one thousand years running from Mikael because he had the power to kill you. And tonight you just throw yourself into a trap with someone who is much more powerful than Mikael. And I want to know why."

Klaus turned his head to look at her.

"When are you going to believe that I genuinely care about you Caroline? I came for you tonight, because I couldn't stand the idea of him hurting you."

Caroline didn't answer. She had never thought that his feelings for her could be real. She had always thought that it was a part of some plan. But he did risk his life for her tonight. It should mean something , shouldn't it? But Caroline wasn't able to think about it right then. She was an emotional wreck and the only think she could focus on was sleep. Klaus noticed her exhaustion.

"You need to sleep Caroline."

Caroline nodded.

"Yes I need to sleep, but believe me Klaus, this conversation is not over", she said firmly before closing her eyes.

Klaus couldn't help but smile. It was his Caroline. Strong and combative. She would never give up before she got the answer she wanted.

Klaus didn't sleep that night. He couldn't help but look at her while she was asleep. What was in that girl who affected him so much? She had been right. He had spent one thousand years running from Mikael, fearing for his life. And yet, when he had known that Ric had Caroline he hadn't hesitated one second before running to her rescue. Because the idea of her being hurt was unbearable. How just one girl could have so much power over him? Him, the Original Hybrid, feared and dreaded in the whole world was ready to put his life in danger for an eighteen year old baby vampire? It was nonsense. And sill, it was exactly what he had done. And worse, it was exactly what he would do again if she needed to.

Klaus was astonished to see how much Caroline was waking up his protective instinct. He had reacted on impulse tonight. It was totally out of character for him when it came to his own safety. He was extremely well known to always being a step ahead from anyone. It was precisely because he always thought about all the possibilities and all the options before doing anything. But today was the first time in literally forever that he put his own life in jeopardy to save someone else. Something he wouldn't have done even for his family. When the Salvatore had told him that Ric was torturing Caroline, Klaus had just run to the high school not even thinking about what he would do once he got there. His whole body was just screaming to save Caroline and his brain couldn't do anything against it. He had never felt such a fury when he had seen Caroline with the pencils planted on her hands. Her pain was unbearable and Klaus had wished being in her place to spare her the ache. It was only at this very moment, that he had clearly understood how much Caroline had gotten under his skin, and that there was nothing he could do about it.

A whimper from Caroline snapped Klaus from his thoughts. She started shaking on the bed while a cry escaped her mouth. Klaus immediately gathered that she was having a nightmare. Gently shaking her, he tried to wake her up but Caroline struggled against him crying for good now. Klaus took her shoulders in an authoritarian manner and raised his voice.

"Caroline, wake up now" he said firmly.

Caroline opened her eyes with a gasp and the terror he saw in her gaze killed him. Without thinking about it, Caroline threw herself in Klaus 'arms and cried against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her very tightly whispering soothing words in her ear.

"It's ok love, it was just a nightmare, you are safe. I won't let anything bad happen to you."

Klaus slowly rocked Caroline against him until she calmed down. She vaguely wondered how she could feel so safe in his arms but she was too tired to focus on the thought. Klaus lay down again, pulling Caroline with him. He half expected her to push him away but she snuggled into him. He tightened his grip around her body and stroked her hair gently.

"Go back to sleep now. I'm here and I won't let anybody hurt you, ok?"

Caroline sniffed against his chest and nodded.

"Ok" she whispered.

She finally drifted off into sleep again and the nightmare didn't come back.

Caroline woke up the next morning totally disorientated. Her eyes scanned the unknown room wondering how she had got there. Then she noticed she was wrapped in a pair of very strong arms and she lifted her gaze. Klaus was looking at her, a concerned expression in his eyes. Truth to be told, he was scared that she would yell at him as soon as she realized that she had spent the night in his arms. He was expecting her to jump as soon as she saw him but Caroline didn't move. She rested her cheek against his chest and she sighed heavily.

"So it wasn't a nightmare? She whispered. "Ric had really turned into vampire hunter mode?"

Klaus briefly squeezed her waist.

"No sweetheart, it wasn't a nightmare" he admitted.

Caroline nodded.

"What are we gonna do? He's going to kill us all" she stated.

Klaus took her face in his hand and forced her to look at him.

"You seem to forget that I'm the Original Hybrid, sweetheart. I'm one thousand years old and I have a few tricks in my bag. Alaric may be stronger than me but as a vampire he is very new. I'm sure I can take him down and believe me, I will."

"So you are going to go after him all alone?" Caroline asked incredulously.

"Well, not all alone" he admitted. "I have received a text from Stefan while you were asleep. He wants to do a big meeting at the boarding house today, so we can discuss how to team up against Alaric."

"You are going to team up with Stefan and Damon?" Caroline asked even more incredulously.

Klaus shrugged.

"I think we're going to need to be as prepared as possible against Alaric if we want to take him down" he admitted.

Caroline couldn't help but smile. "Oh my god, I can't wait to see you team up with the Salvatore brothers" she said a hint of tease in her voice.

Klaus smiled too. He was happy to see that she seemed to be herself again. That was one of the thing he admired the most about her. How strong she was. How quickly she could recover. She was so much stronger than she gave herself credit for.

"Yeah, it should be interesting to see" he chuckled softly.

He then gently stroked her cheek.

"How do you feel?"

Caroline looked at her hands. They were back to normal.

"Well, your blood did the trick" she answered but Klaus shook his head.

"I didn't mean physically" he clarified.

Caroline sighed. "I'll survive" she said confidently.

Klaus smiled. "I know you will sweetheart."

"I should go home now" Caroline said softly. "My mom is going to finish her shift and she going to freak out if I'm not there. And I need to update her with the latest events."

"Sure Love, I'll drive you."

Caroline extricated herself from Klaus 'arms and she immediately missed the contact of his body against hers. She suddenly felt cold and vulnerable and she shivered in discomfort. Shaking her head to clear her mind, Caroline quickly pulled on her shoes and her jacket and followed Klaus who was waiting for her. During the drive home, Caroline seemed lost in her thoughts and Klaus didn't try to break the silence. She was not hostile, she was just pensive and he respected it. He stopped the car in front of her house and looked at her.

"Well, I guess I'll see you at the big meeting at the boarding house this afternoon?" he asked.

Caroline nodded.

"Yes, sure, I'll be there."

She got out of the car and headed to the front door. She seemed hesitant and she suddenly turned around.

Klaus looked at her trough the window of his car, his eyebrows raised interrogatively.

"Love?"

"I didn't even thank you for yesterday" Caroline said with an apologetic look. "So, thank you for saving me "she added a little awkwardly.

Klaus smiled.

"My pleasure love. I love saving your life" he answered with a hint of humor in his voice.

Caroline pulled a face.

"Well, let's not make a habit out of it" she muttered and Klaus couldn't help but grin as he drove away.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Here's chapter two, I hope you're gonna like it.
> 
> Please be nice with the mistakes, english is not my first language.
> 
> I don't own anything in TVD.

Caroline tried not to think about the previous night after Klaus had dropped her home. She didn't want to think about torture 101 with Alaric and even less about Klaus. What the hell had she been thinking when she asked Klaus if she could stay in his mansion, in his bed. Wrapped in his arms! No, she hadn't been thinking. And she couldn't let it distract her now. She needed to focus on the Ric problem.

It wasn't hard to guess that the meeting at the boarding house would be a disaster. Klaus and the Salvatores plotting together. Definitely not a good idea. Everyone would be there, Bonnie, Elena, Tyler. Tyler. Caroline's stomach knotted at the thought of him. She hated the idea of Klaus and Tyler in the same room. Tyler hadn't known what had happened last night. Otherwise he would have come to rescue her, she was sure. But even he wasn't strong enough for Ric. And how could she tell him about spending the night at Klaus 'mansion? Well maybe she could just tell him about the saving part? Caroline immediately felt guilty with the way she was thinking. How could she even contemplate lying to the boy who spent weeks breaking every bone in his body for her? But she couldn't just tell him the truth either, he would be devastated. Besides, it wasn't as if it meant anything anyway. She had acted on fear and pain. Last night didn't mean anything at all. As Caroline let the shower wash away the last of the blood stains she still had on her body, she couldn't help but wonder why it was so hard to convince herself of that.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Klaus couldn't stop thinking about the previous night. He was oscillating between fury and amazement. Fury against Alaric and what he had done to Caroline. And amazement to have held her in his arms. He would have preferred to have her in his arms in other circumstances, but still, he would never forget the feel of her body against his. It was the first time in his life that he had shared his bed without any ulterior motive. Of course he wanted Caroline. She was so beautiful it was impossible to think otherwise. But he also deeply cared about her. And last night hadn't been about lust. It had been about comfort, about being there for her. And it was something very new for Klaus. He didn't even know that he had it in him. But that was the magic of Caroline. She made him feel things that he hadn't felt in forever. She made him do things that he wouldn't have done for anybody else. Caroline was his light. His redemption. And he would fight as hard as he could to win her over.

He was still thinking about it when he arrived at the boarding house later in the afternoon. The meeting wouldn't be a pleasant affair but he couldn't help but feel glad about meeting Caroline again. Klaus didn't bother to knock before entering the boarding house. He introduced himself in the living room where everyone was already gathered. His eyes searched automatically for Caroline and he saw her sitting on the couch. Tyler was right next to her, and when he saw Klaus, he slid an arm around Caroline's waist and pulled her closer to him. Klaus couldn't help the little clench of his heart on seeing her in Tyler's arms. Now that he knew what it felt to have her in his arms, seeing her in someone else's embrace was painful. He briefly wondered if Caroline had told Tyler that she had spent the night in his arms but he highly doubted it. Caroline gave him a ghost of a smile when their eyes met and he was about to talk to her when Tyler snapped.

"Does he really have to be here?" he spat. "How can you trust him to help us after all he has done?"

"I did help you last night by saving your girlfriend" Klaus retorted sharply. "Where were you while she was being tortured?"

Tyler growled in fury. "I had no idea Alaric had her. Otherwise I would have saved her myself."

Klaus scoffed. "It's easy to say now" he stated coldly.

Tyler was about to retort when Caroline intervened.

"That's enough now. Both of you."

She turned to look at Klaus. "Tyler had no idea that I was in trouble ok?" Then she turned to Tyler. "He did save my life last night, so please, cut him some slack."

Tyler and Klaus glared at each other, anger perceptible in their eyes but Damon cut anything they were about to say.

"As fascinating as this may be, we are not here to see you two fight over Barbie, ok? We have a much more important problem to solve, remember?"

Klaus and Tyler broke their murderous stare and eventually the discussion started. Tyler didn't remove his protective arm from around Caroline and Klaus could have sworn that she didn't like the way he was trying to mark his territory. She broke the embrace the first opportunity she got to sit next to a crying Elena, trying to comfort her. The meeting didn't bring forward any useful ideas, mostly because almost all the people in the room weren't still able to process the whole Ric killer thing. Minus Klaus, they all just had lost a friend and looking for a way to kill him was extremely hard. After a whole afternoon of pointless arguments, they finally decided to wait for Alaric's next move. It wasn't the best option, but they didn't know what else they could do. When everyone started to exit the boarding house, Klaus noticed Caroline climbing in Tyler's car. He shamelessly eavesdropped on their conversation.

"Do you wanna go home or you want to go to the grill?" Tyler asked.

"I'm not in the mood for the grill, let's just go home" Caroline sighed.

"Why can't we just hang out for a bit?"

"No offense Tyler but I'm exhausted. I would like to be alone for a while."

Klaus heard Tyler scoff. "Does this have anything to do with Klaus saving you yesterday?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Caroline snapped.

"Well you kind of defended him earlier" Tyler said a little sharply.

"He did save my life Tyler, ok? He didn't have to but he did. He did come to that classroom and fought Ric to get me out of here. He could have died but he came anyway."

Klaus didn't hear Tyler answer because he ignited the car but he had heard enough. Caroline was grateful to him. Maybe she wouldn't hate him anymore now? It wasn't a very big thing, but it was still a start.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Klaus couldn't help but think about Caroline all evening. He tried to read, he tried to paint, he tried anything and everything to distract himself but he failed pitifully. He still had her scent in his nostrils and the feeling of her body in his arms. How could he sleep now that he knew how it felt to have her in his arms? His bed would never be the same without Caroline. Klaus growled in frustration. This girl was driving him crazy. He hoped she was ok after what she had to go through the day before. Without even realizing it, Klaus took his jacket and headed to Caroline's house. He wanted to make sure that she was ok. He needed to make sure that she was ok.

Caroline was tossing and turning in her bed. She was replaying the fight she had with Tyler in her head. She could understand why he was mad but after all Klaus did save her life. She had every right to be grateful. But maybe not every right to spend the night in his arms, said a little voice in her head. She had deliberately forgotten to tell that part of the story to Tyler and she still felt guilty about it. But she was vulnerable. She had just been tortured. She needed to feel safe. And she had felt safe with Klaus because he was the one to save her, Caroline reasoned. It made sense, didn't it? As Caroline was desperately trying to convince herself that spending a night in her savior's arms meant absolutely nothing, she slowly drifted into sleep. Only a couple hours after, the nightmare hit her again. She was in that classroom all over again and Ric was planting wooden pencils in her hands. Caroline cried in her sleep and then started to sob softly.

Klaus heard Caroline cry from the garden he was standing. Without a second thought, he climbed her window and rushed into her room. He understood immediately when he saw her struggle with her sheets. Like the night before, Klaus firmly shook Caroline and spoke loudly.

"Wake up Caroline, it's a nightmare. Caroline!"

He called her name until she opened her eyes with a scream. She jumped in terror when she saw someone in her room but she breathed in relief when she noticed it was Klaus. It was extremely odd. Since when was she relieved and not scared to find Klaus in her room? Without thinking about it, she threw her arms around Klaus 'neck and snuggled into him. Klaus wrapped his arms around her protectively and laid her down. Like the night before, he whispered soothing words in her ear until she calmed down.

"I'm sorry" Caroline finally sniffed. "I'm not usually this emotional."

"There is nothing to be sorry about, love. What you went through yesterday was really hard and even more because you knew him and trusted him. You didn't have the time to grieve about the loss of a friend that he turned into a monster and tortured you. You have every reason and every right to be upset."

Caroline lifted her face to look at him. "Why are you so nice to me?" she whispered.

Klaus smiled and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"You know why."

"Actually we didn't finish our conversation from last night" said Caroline. "I had warned you that it wasn't over."

Klaus chuckled softly. The girl amazed him a little bit more every day.

"What do you want to know, love?"

Caroline hesitated. She absent mindedly started to play with the buttons of his shirt and she finally dove in.

"I want to know why you stayed. You could have run the second Stefan told you about Ric but you didn't. You came to save me and today you were at the meeting to try and find a way to kill him. Why would you do that? You run from Mikael for a millennium to stay alive so why not now? It doesn't make any sense."

Klaus cradled her face in his hands and made her look at him. "I'm going to give you the same answer as yesterday, love. Because of you. There is no way I'm leaving town with you staying back unprotected, especially when you were that vampire hunter's first target. If I could, I would take you with me but I know you will be unhappy. Your friends and family mean the world to you and I can't take you far away from them. And you will be unhappy to have to live constantly on the run. So I have to stay and protect you until you can be safe again."

Caroline swallowed hard. Klaus' eyes were burning with passion and she couldn't remove her gaze from him. He was telling the truth. She knew he was the greatest liar and the best manipulator in the world. But she could have bet her life that he was telling the truth. Without really knowing why, the thought warmed her heart. Caroline smiled at him a little shyly.

"Wow, this is certainly a way to get through a girl's heart. The whole hero thing." Caroline was trying to joke but her voice was shaking and Klaus knew that she was touched.

"Well, is it working?" he asked hopefully, playing along.

Caroline buried her head in his chest, avoiding his gaze.

"I'm exhausted" she deflected. "This nightmare was really.." She didn't end her sentence but Klaus felt her tense against him.

He tightened his grip around her. "You are safe here Caroline. Alaric can't come inside your house."

Caroline nodded. "I know" she answered. "But I'm scared of closing my eyes" she confessed softly.

"Will it help if I stay with you?" Klaus asked.

Caroline hesitated. She knew it wasn't right. She knew her friends would be mad at her. She knew Tyler would be mad at her. But Klaus' arms around her were the most reassuring thing she had ever known.

"Yes it will help" she answered quietly.

Klaus smiled happily.

"So it's done, I'm staying."

He made himself comfortable cradling Caroline closer to him. He wrapped an arm behind her shoulders and the other one around her waist. Caroline snuggled into him with a sigh and rested her head on his chest. She put one of her hand under her cheek against his chest and extended her other arm across his torso. The feeling of his muscular body against hers was more comforting than anything else she had known. She knew it shouldn't feel so right to be in his arms but it did.

She quickly drifted into sleep, and like the night before, the nightmare didn't come back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Please let me know what you think, reviews always make me very happy :-)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
> Thank you for sticking with the story.  
> Here’s a new chapter, please let me know what you think about it.  
> Be nice with the mistakes, English is not my first language.  
> I don’t own anything in TVD.

Caroline had a lot on her mind. All the pain Ric had inflicted on her had refreshed her memories of being tortured by her father, not to mention the werewolves. She was strong, but this time with all the traumas piling up, she was finding it difficult to move on.

The third night after Ric had attacked her, she had the same nightmare as the previous nights. And once again, Klaus woke her up and held her in his arms so she could sleep. When she asked him why he was there, he vaguely pretended that he was "passing by" but Caroline knew better. He was checking in on her. And the thought made her….happy. She knew she shouldn't but she couldn't help it. It was incredibly comforting to know that someone as powerful as Klaus was protecting her.

The next day Tyler asked her if he could spend the night with her. Caroline agreed, hoping with all her might that Klaus wouldn't show up. She wasn't strong enough to handle a fight between the two hybrids. The anxiety kept her from sleeping for a long time. She was expecting Klaus to climb in through her window any second, and her stomach knotted at the idea. But Klaus didn't show up and even if Caroline was relieved, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. She turned and tossed in Tyler's arms for hours, unable to sleep. His embrace was tender but oddly Caroline couldn't help thinking about another set of arms around her. She finally drifted into sleep but the nightmare didn't let her rest. She woke up screaming and crying, clinging to Tyler. He did his best to reassure her but the nightmare came back after a while. Tyler tried to comfort her but all those memories just came flooding back every time she tried to close her eyes.

Klaus spent the entire night under Caroline's window. He was about to climb in when he heard Tyler. He hated the idea of Caroline sleeping in Tyler's arms but he cared enough about her to respect her decision. If she wanted to spend the night with his boyfriend he had no right to interfere. Boyfriend. Klaus gritted his teeth at the thought. Caroline deserved so much better than a high school boy. Tyler loved her, Klaus reluctantly admitted that. But it wasn't enough for someone like Caroline. She deserved so much more. She deserved the most beautiful things in the world. She deserved the world itself.

The first time she woke up crying and sobbing, Klaus' heart clenched painfully. God, he really hated seeing her in pain. He heard Tyler comfort her and he couldn't help but feel acutely jealous. The sound of Tyler's hands stroking Caroline's back was unbearable. The only thing keeping him from rushing to her side was that at least she would be ok now. But as he heard her scream with fear again, Klaus had to gather all his self control to not just barge into Caroline's bedroom, pull her out from Tyler's embrace and take her in his own arms. He knew he could have comforted her. He knew she would have been able to sleep if she had been with him. But she would have been mad at him for doing such a thing so he resisted the huge temptation. His heart clenched all night long with every sobs that escaped Caroline mouth. He had never felt this powerless and he hated it.

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The next night he was under Caroline's window again. He heard her talking to Tyler. He wanted to stay again but Caroline gently yet firmly told him that she wanted to be alone. Klaus didn't hesitate before climbing in through the window after Tyler's departure. If she didn't want to see him, he would know it soon enough.

This time Klaus didn't try to pretend that he was "passing by". He was laying down on Caroline's bed when she came out from the bathroom in her pajamas. Klaus didn't say anything. He just looked at her with the softest smile on his lips and Caroline realized that she wasn't even surprise to see him. On the contrary, she was expecting him. It was the reason she had asked Tyler to leave. She knew Klaus wouldn't come if he was here. And truth to be told, she had missed him. She felt guilty about it but she couldn't help the way she was feeling. Klaus was able to stop her nightmares. Tyler wasn't. Maybe it was because he was the one who had saved her, or maybe because he was the strongest person on the entire planet, she didn't know. And she didn't care anymore. She had longed for his embrace the previous night. Without a word, Caroline slid under her duvet and snuggled into Klaus. It was only the fourth time she was doing it but it seemed like she had done it forever. Their bodies seemed to fit perfectly.

"Thank you" she whispered in his chest before closing her eyes.

"You're welcome, sweetheart" answered Klaus, cradling her closer to him. He tangled one of his hands in her hair and he stroked the soft curls until Caroline fell asleep.

Caroline slept like a baby and she woke up with a light smile on her lips. Klaus took a minute to gently stroke her cheeks and to look at her. She seemed peaceful and at ease. He then pressed a kiss on her forehead and disappeared without a word.

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It became a routine. Klaus waited for her every night when she was ready to go to bed. She nuzzled into him and they talked, usually about Alaric, and what they were going to do about him. But progressively, they started talking about a lot of other things. Klaus was a good talker. Caroline could listen to him all night long when his was talking about his favorite countries or about his favorite painters. He was so passionate and cultured, it was enthralling. But Klaus was also a good listener. Caroline could talk to him about anything, he always listened intently. It was new for Caroline. She could share her doubts, her worries, her interrogations about her future. Nobody had ever listened to her like this. And it was addictive.

Caroline was progressively becoming an emotional wreck. Spending her nights with Klaus and her days with Tyler was becoming too much for her to handle. Tyler had noticed that something was wrong and he was becoming more and more insistent to know what it was. He didn't understand why Caroline didn't want him to spend the night with her anymore even when her mum was not home. Caroline pretended that she was too worried about the whole Ric thing but Tyler wasn't convinced. To make him stop pestering her, Caroline had to give up once and accepted that he slept in her house. She was hoping that it would be enough to make him stop asking questions she was not ready to answer yet.

The night was awful. She knew Klaus wouldn't come because he always made sure that she was alone before coming in her room. But she also knew that he would spend the night under her window. Making sure she was ok. Listening to every word and every sound coming from the room. Caroline desperately discouraged Tyler's initative to make out with her. She knew Tyler wouldn't be content with just a kiss and she was definitively not in the mood. Caroline didn't sleep that night. She could feel Klaus' presence under her window acutely. She felt so uncomfortable in Tyler's arms she wanted to scream. She turned and tossed all night long trying as much as she could not to push Tyler back. She greeted the morning with an unbelievable feeling of relief. She woke Tyler up as soon as the sun had begun to rise and she asked him to go because her mum was about to come home. Which was a lie. But she couldn't take the situation anymore. The only thing she wanted was to get out of Tyler's arms and finally be alone to think. As soon as Tyler left, Caroline collapsed on her bed, feeling so guilty and so anguished that her stomach hurt. Before she could start to try and sort out her feelings, she felt a presence in the room. Turning her head, she saw Klaus standing next to the bed. He looked as angry and sad.

"So, did you spend a good night in your boyfriend's arms?" he asked bitterly.

Caroline swallowed hard. The harshness in his voice couldn't hide the sadness in his eyes and Caroline suddenly felt very guilty.

"Not especially" she admitted softly. "It became difficult to sleep in his arms since I began sleeping in yours"

"So why are you still sleeping with him?" Klaus asked harshly.

"Because he's my boyfriend" Caroline answered pitifully.

Klaus scoffed. "Does your boyfriend know that you spend most of your nights in another man's arms?"

Caroline flinched at the coldness in his voice. Unable to look at him, she looked away, biting nervously her lips. Klaus suddenly sat on the edge of the bed and took her roughly by the shoulders.

"Answer me Caroline" he ordered harshly. "Does your boyfriend know that you spend most of your night in my arms?"

Still unable to look at him Caroline shook her head as she tried to fight back the tears that were threatening to spill anytime now. Klaus momentarily hesitated at Caroline's obvious distress. He couldn't bear to see her upset. But he had to know what she was doing to him.

Putting a finger under her chin, Klaus made Caroline look at him.

"You feel something for me Caroline. Otherwise you wouldn't allow me to be here every night. What is keeping you from breaking up with Tyler then?"

Caroline swallowed but shook her head, unable to answer. She knew she would burst into tears if she so much as opened her mouth. But Klaus was not in the mood to let it go.

"Answer me Caroline" he said, a little louder this time.

Caroline sniffed. "I can't break up with Tyler. He went through hell to break the sire bond just for me. How could I let him down now? And I love him" Caroline added quickly before Klaus could say anything.

Klaus scoffed. "Yes you love him so much that you are unable to spend a night in his arms anymore" he spat.

Caroline felt of pang of hurt in her stomach at the remark. She was so emotional and confused that all of it suddenly exploded because of Klaus' harshness.

"This is all you fault" she yelled all of a sudden. "You are the reason he left, you are the reason things are not the same between us anymore, you are the one who destroyed our relationship!"

Klaus' face twisted in anger. His jaw suddenly clenched as his eyes flashed with fury.

"Is this what you really think?" he asked icily. "Don't worry Caroline, I won't come between you anymore. You won't see me again. I wish you a happy life with your boyfriend." Klaus couldn't have put more scorn in the word "boyfriend" and Caroline looked at him as if he had hit her.

Klaus turned his back to her and rushed towards the window. Caroline suddenly felt a wave of panic rise in her chest. He couldn't leave now. He couldn't leave her. Not like this, after all those harsh words.

Without thinking about it, Caroline flashed in front of Klaus and threw herself in his arms.

"Don't go, please don't go, please, please" Caroline was now fully crying and she was pleading in between sobs. She slid her arms behind his neck and pressed herself against him, whispering desperately in the crook of his neck.

"I'm sorry, please don't go, I need you, please" Caroline's pleas turned into begs as Klaus didn't move an inch to hold her. He was frozen against her, unable to decide what to do. He closed his eyes, unable to see her cry. He wanted to go and leave her to think about their argument but his arms seemed to a have their own will. They slowly wrapped themselves around Caroline' waist and pulled her closer to him. Klaus didn't miss the sigh of relief that escaped her lips as she felt his arms around her and the sound made him melt. He mentally cursed her for making him so weak and vulnerable. He did not do emotional, damn it. But now that she was in his arms again, nothing could have made him let her go. He took her to the bed and lay them down without breaking the embrace. Caroline nuzzled into him, tangling her legs with his and wrapping her arms across his chest. Klaus sighed, knowing that there was absolutely no way he could stay mad at her when she was crushed against him like this.

"I'm sorry" Caroline whispered, tears still perceptible in her voice. "I know that what I'm doing is wrong for both of you. I just don't know what to do. Please give me some time to figure things out. Please."

She was pleading again and Klaus closed his eyes. He couldn't deny her anything when she was begging like this.

He nodded. "I'll give you some time Caroline, but you have to make a decision. We can't keep going on like this."

"I know" Caroline mumbled. "I will, I promise. Will you stay with me for a while?" she asked, her puppy dog eyes on Klaus. Klaus sighed and wondered since when he, the big bad hybrid, had become so whipped by a girl.

"Alright, love" he answered, mentally cursing himself as he complied with her wishes yet again. But as Caroline smiled and whispered a thank you in return, he suddenly realized that he would do anything to deserve that smile again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Please let me know what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

Caroline had never felt so lost and so confused. She had become completely addicted to the nights she was spending in Klaus' arms. He was always so sweet and so tender with her, it made her melt. He was the only one able to comfort her and to make her feel safe. His strong embrace had become indispensable to her, but Caroline was unable to stop seeing Tyler. They had been through so much together that she couldn't think about breaking up with him. She felt so guilty about him that she had a constant knot in her stomach. She was waking up with the knot every morning and she was carrying it all day long. The knot only loosened when Caroline was seeing Klaus waiting for her on her bed, and that she could slide in his arms.

Tyler and her were fighting all the time. Tyler was urging her to tell him what was wrong, but Caroline was always telling him that she was scared about the threat that Ric was. Tyler didn't really believe her but he didn't know what to do. Caroline tried as much as she could to avoid any intimate situations with him but it was not always easy. Tyler was more and more demonstrative with her as he could feel he was losing her and was desperately trying to get her back.

The worst part was that Tyler was always even more clingy when they were in front of Klaus. They all had to spend a lot of time together in order to counter Alaric's plans, and Tyler always made sure to tightly hold Caroline in his arms when Klaus was here. Klaus had to grit his teeth every time to prevent himself from throwing at Tyler's face that it was HIS embrace that Caroline was craving at night. He knew that Caroline wouldn't have forgiven him so he was clenching his jaw and gripping his fists, dying to rip Tyler's heart off his chest.

Klaus was reaching his breaking point. He was not known for his patience and the whole situation was driving him crazy. He was not one to share and knowing that Caroline still had some intimacy with Tyler was unbearable. Nothing intimate had ever happened between them but knowing that Tyler had the right to put his hands on her was infuriating him. Klaus cared about Caroline. Genuinely. Having her in his arms was heaven and he was proud to know that he was the only one able to comfort her when she was scared. He truly loved to know that she felt so safe and secure in his arms but Klaus was also a man. A man who had feelings for a woman he was spending all his nights with. Holding her in his arms. Feeling every curves of her body against his. And it was harder and harder to content himself to just embrace her. Every time she was pressed against him, the only thing he could think about was ripped her pajamas off and ravage her body. His need for her was becoming so strong that it was painful and he didn't know for how long he could keep handling this.

Klaus was sat on the Grill, trying to drown all his frustration in a bottle of bourbon. He was wondering how many time he could keep going on like this without really lose his sanity when he noticed Caroline and Tyler entering the Grill together. They didn't see him and they sat in the corner of the room. Tyler slid his arm around Caroline's waist and Klaus noticed she immediately tensed. He heard Tyler scoff in disbelief.

"What is it, Care? You seem so nervous every time I touch you, what does it mean?"

"It doesn't mean anything" Caroline answered quickly. "How am I supposed to be in a romantic mood when we have a serial killer after us?"

Tyler seemed unconvinced. "You keep telling me this but I can feel that you are distant with me. Why do you refuse to talk to me about it?"

"I'm not distant, Tyler, just preoccupied."

"So, prove it" Tyler asked teasingly.

Klaus tensed immediately, feeling in his very core that he wasn't going to like what was about to happened. And he was right. He saw Caroline took Tyler's face in his hands and kiss him. If he wasn't as devoured by the jealousy he would have notice that the kiss was more desperate than passionate but he wasn't able to think anymore. With a low growl, Klaus suddenly flashed in front of Caroline and Tyler. They both jumped in surprise and Caroline gasped when she saw him. Klaus didn't even spare a glance to Tyler. His eyes were focused on Caroline and there were so much pain and so much sadness in them that Caroline immediately felt on the verge of tears. Klaus kept looking at her a few moments and then he flashed out of the Grill.

He didn't know what he did after that. The rest of the day was a blur of bourbon and blood. Klaus just noticed at night that his steps had carried him until Caroline's house, out of habit. His first move was to turn around and leave but he suddenly changed his mind and climbed the window, not bothering to listen if Caroline was alone. She was. She was pacing in her room, her beautiful face twisted in anxiety. As soon as she saw Klaus, she threw herself in his arms and burst into tears.

"I'm sorry" she cried "I'm so sorry, I didn't know what to do, I'm sorry." Caroline tried to press herself against him but Klaus was not in the mood. He took her two wrists in his hands and pulled her away from him. Caroline's heart clenched painfully when she noticed the harsh look on his face. Klaus was not angry but he was determined. He had reached his breaking point and he couldn't keep going on like this.

"This is not possible anymore Caroline. You can't keep spending your nights in my arms and your days in Tyler's arms. I can't stand it anymore. You have to make a choice."

Klaus' voice was extremely controlled and it made the situation even worse. Caroline would have preferred he yelled at her or even throw her on the wall rather than this cold and measured voice. His voice was never like this when he was talking to her. It was always warm and tender, sweet even. This voice devoid of any feelings was cutting Caroline's limbs as painfully as a knife. She tried desperately to come against him but he was holding her wrists firmly and he didn't let her come any closer.

"I care about you Caroline. Genuinely. And I can't stand the idea of sharing you. I want you to be mine as much as I want being yours. I'm not going to keep coming in your room at nights Caroline."

A painful sob escaped Caroline's mouth at his words. She tried again to slide her arms behind his neck but he didn't allow her to free her hands.

"Please don't do that" she whispered desperately "please, you know I need you, please" Caroline was sobbing now but this time Klaus didn't soften.

"If you need me you're going to have to choose me Caroline. Because I'm not sharing you anymore. Either you are with Tyler or you are with me but you can't have us both. I gave you time enough to figure out what you wanted and now you have to make a choice."

Klaus let go of her wrists to take her face in his hands. Caroline immediately clung on his shirt but Klaus didn't let her distract him.

"Have you any idea of how hard it is for me to hold you in my arms every night? I can feel every curves of your body against mine but I can't kiss you. I can't touch you. I can't stroke you. Have you any idea what it cost me not to rip your pajamas off and make love to you? The only thing I can think about is use my fingers and my tongue on your body until you scream my name."

Klaus' voice was turning husky and despite her distress Caroline couldn't help but feel oddly aroused at Klaus' words. She had never really noticed the effect she had on him. He was always so sweet and tender that she tended to forget that he was also a man. A man who had feelings for her. For the first time, Caroline fully realized how much Klaus cared about her to be able to fight his need for her since such a long time.

"This is your choice now Caroline. It's me or it's Tyler but it's not both of us. I care about you way too much to stand the situation anymore."

With these words, Klaus let go of her face and headed to the window. With a soft sob, Caroline ran after him and slid her arms around his chest, clinging desperately to him.

"Please don't do this, please. I'll talk to Tyler, I promise but don't go, please."

Klaus was physically suffering to see her so desperate and so distressed but he was determined not to give in this time. He firmly pulled her away from him.

"No. You can come back to me when you will have taken a decision. Not before. You have to make some sorting out in your feelings. I won't be a substitute for you. I want more."

With that Klaus disappeared through the window and Caroline broke down. The emotional tension from the last weeks suddenly got the best of her. Tyler's return, Ric torturing her and trying to kill them, Klaus' saving, her mixed feelings, her arguments with Tyler, her arguments with Klaus, everything just fall on her all of a sudden and she broke down. She collapsed on the floor of her room and she cried desperately. She cried until she was drained out from her whole energy and until the exhaustion got the best of her and she fell asleep on the floor.

The nightmare woke her up crying and sobbing two hours later. She desperately looked out for Klaus and then she remembered their fight. Caroline was about to start crying again but she forced herself to breathe and to calm down. She climbed on her bed with difficulty and tried to put some order in her confused brain. Klaus didn't want to see her anymore. She would never have his arms around her again. Unless she let go of Tyler. Tyler who went through hell to break the sire bond just for the love of her. Tyler who had always been there for her. Tyler that her friends liked and accepted. What would happen if she chose Klaus? Tyler would hate her. Her friends would hate her. Her mother would hate her. Tyler was the safest choice. The easy choice. Tyler's love was pure and she knew he would do anything for her.

But Klaus challenged her. He was always pushing her forward, making her think about what she really wanted. He made her question her beliefs, her needs. He forced her to take responsibilities for her actions. Klaus was not treating her like a frail thing. He trusted her ability to take care of herself. He was making a grown up of her. She was a woman with him as she was still a teenager with Tyler.

Caroline tortured herself all night long, trying to weigh the pros and the cons and unable to take a decision. Her mind was a succession of moments that she had spent with which one of them. Their faces were superimposed in her mind and whirling in a blurry fog. She was such a mess on the morning that she didn't leave her bed all day long. Caroline slept short periods of time, some nightmare always waking her up. Tyler yelling at her that she had betrayed him. Klaus hissing that he didn't want to see her anymore. Her friends looking at her with disgust. Her mum kicking her out of their home. Caroline woke up each time crying and painfully out of breathe. She finally gave up on trying to sleep and she forced herself to dress up and get out of the house. She needed fresh air. She ended up at the Grill, feeling in the mood for some vodka. Her breathe stayed caught on her chest when she entered the Grill. Tyler and Klaus were both there. Klaus was sit at the bar, a bottle of bourbon in front of him. Tyler was sit on the opposite corner of the room, lost in his thoughts. Neither of them noticed Caroline froze at the entry of the Grill. She stayed where she was, looking alternatively at Klaus and Tyler, during what seemed forever.

And then realization suddenly washed over Caroline. It wasn't about pros and cons. It wasn't about her friends' reaction. It wasn't about anything rational. It was not a choice she could make with her head. It was a choice she must make with her heart. It was a choice she must make with her emotions. Everything suddenly became crystal clear on her mind. Caroline knew what she wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I would love to know what you think so please let a review, it always makes me very very happy :-)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the people sticking with the story.
> 
> Warning for this chapter: mature content.

Caroline rung the bell of the mansion. She was feeling better than she had felt in weeks. She had no idea how things were going to turn but she knew she had done the right thing. She had taken the right decision. Klaus opened the door and sighed when he saw her.

"Caroline, I haven't changed my mind since the day before yesterday. I want you to make a choice and…"

Caroline cut him off. "I did" she said firmly.

Klaus raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"You did? Since the day before yesterday?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes" she answered with the same confidence. "May I come in?"

Klaus looked at her a little puzzled. And suddenly anxious. He would have never expected that she could take a decision so quickly. He wasn't sure if he was prepared to what she had to say. His heart suddenly clenched painfully but his face remained impassive. He invited Caroline in with a gesture of his hands and followed her in the living room. He noticed she was not nervous. She seemed confident and steady.

She turned to look at him straight in the eyes and with a slightly hesitant smile began what she had come there to say.

"I spent the most horrible night of my life after you left me the other day, but I realized that you were right. I had to make a decision. We couldn't have kept going like that. I was lying to Tyler and I was unfair to you. You were right in making me realize how wrong I was in what I had been doing."

Caroline stopped. It wasn't as easy as she would have thought it would be. And the impassive face of Klaus was not helping.

"I spent the whole night thinking about my relationship with Tyler and what I had shared with you and trying to decide which one of you I wanted to be with. But it was impossible. Because you two are too different and you make me feel so...different that I can't make a comparison between you two. When I got up yesterday morning, I was desperate. Because I knew if I didn't make a choice soon, I would end up losing both of you."

Caroline's voice started to shake a little and she stopped to take a deep breathe. Klaus was listening intently, trying to understand where she was going. He managed to stay unreadable but he noticed that his hands were shaking and he quickly tucked them in the pockets of his jeans. This was it. He knew he was about to win her or to lose her forever. His throat suddenly dried up as his stomach clenched.

Caroline was struggling to find the right words and she hesitantly continued.

"And then I came to the Grill and there you were. Both of you. And suddenly I realized that I didn't need to make a choice because my choice was already made. It was made a long time ago but I was too scared to acknowledge it, even to myself. I knew what I wanted since a long time but I didn't have the courage to admit it. Because wanting to be with you is the scariest thing that I have ever had to do in my whole life."

Klaus suddenly lifted his head to look at her, astonished. He swallowed hard, not sure about the steadiness of his voice if he would speak now.

"What did you just say?" he asked, hardly able to breathe.

Caroline smiled a little shyly.

"I said that wanting to be with you is the scariest thing I have ever had to do in my whole life."

Klaus swallowed again, not sure about what to do. Caroline suddenly closed the gap between them and cradled his face in her hands.

"I want to be with you, Klaus. I have known it since the first night you held me in your arms to protect me from the nightmare. But it was so hard to admit it. I had so much in my mind, I didn't know what to do about it. But I know now. I want to be with you. And not only at nights when nobody knows. I want to be with you all the time."

Klaus leant in her touch, still unable to completely process her words.

"What about Tyler?" he whispered.

Caroline didn't flinch. "I broke up with him this morning" she answered. "I care about him a lot and I always will but he's not the one I want."

Klaus pressed his forehead against hers.

"Are you really sure about this? Because I couldn't bear it if you changed your…"

Caroline cut him off by briefly pressing her mouth against his.

"I'm one hundred per cent sure" she whispered against his lips. "Now could you kiss me, please, because I don't think I can wait any longer."

Klaus took a few second to look at Caroline, trying to process her words. She was waiting, her forehead pressed against his. He searched for any sign of uncertainty, doubts or hesitation in her gaze but he couldn't find any of it. The only thing he could see in Caroline's eyes was tenderness and longing.

Klaus suddenly smiled and released a breath he didn't know he was holding. The relief washed all over him as the happiness slowly rose up in his chest. Cradling Caroline's face in his hands, he pressed his lips against hers. He took his time, savoring the taste of her lips and deposing soft kisses on her mouth. Caroline clung on his shirt as Klaus nibbled her lower lips gently until Caroline slightly parted her mouth so he could deepen the kiss. Caroline sighed against his lips when his tongue touched hers and Klaus melted at the soft sound. It was enough to make him stop holding back and to make him lose the control he was trying to keep since such a long time.

With a low growl, Klaus made Caroline back down until her back touched the wall. He pinned her against it with his own body and Caroline sighed again, heavily this time. She instinctively bucked her hips to feel more of him and the move made them both groan. Klaus crushed his lips on Caroline's and kissed her hungrily, ravaging mercilessly her mouth with his tongue until she couldn't suppress a moan. He then attacked her neck, sucking at her pulse point and making Caroline shiver. Her legs were turning to jelly and she had to grip Klaus' shoulders to support her. Their chest collided at the move and it felt so good that Caroline slid her arms behind Klaus' neck to pull him closer. Gladly obliging, Klaus wrapped his arms around her hips and secured her tightly to him, pressing his hard body against her soft curves.

Caroline moaned when his hands roamed all over her body before he eagerly slid them under her shirt to stroke the bare skin. He explored the soft flesh of her back and of her stomach before brought his hands up to her breasts. He softly cupped them through her bra and made circles around her nipples with his thumbs. Caroline arched against his hands, her breath suddenly erratic and her eyes clouded with lust. Klaus removed her shirt, unhappy with the contact of the fabric against his fingers. Her bra followed her shirt on the floor and Klaus repeated his previous ministrations on her breasts on her bare skin. Caroline made a strangle noise as Klaus was teasing her nipples with his thumbs. She took his face in her hands and crushed her lips desperately against his.

"Kiss me" she pleaded "please don't' stop kissing me". Klaus complied, ravaging her mouth once more as his hands lowered under the hem of her jeans. He unbuttoned it and slowly slid his hand inside her panty. Caroline's gasp turned into a cry when he slid a finger against her clit. She arched against his hand, desperate for more pressure. Klaus kept stroking her softly, his thumb barely brushing against her clit and making Caroline beg for more.

"More" she begged against his lips "please, I need more".

But Klaus removed his hand, making Caroline growl in frustration.

"Not against the wall, love" he whispered in her ear. Taking her in his arms, he flashed to his bedroom and lay her down on his bed. He immediately resumed his ministrations on her body, mesmerized by the feeling of her soft skin under his hands. Taking him by surprise, Caroline flipped them over and pinned him to the mattress with her hips. Noticing Klaus' surprise look she smiled at him.

"I'm not going to let you do all the hard work" she whispered in his ear. Klaus smiled and tangled his hands in her hair as she removed his shirt and started to kiss his chest. She took the time to savor the taste of his skin, drawing each muscles of his torso with her tongue. She grazed the soft flesh here and there making Klaus shiver under her touch. Caroline let a trail of hot open mouth kisses all along his chest until she reached his belly button. She then slowly removed Klaus' jeans and his boxers before going on with her ministrations by kissing the hollow of his groin. Klaus' breath was becoming pretty erratic and his sex was desperate for some attention. Caroline kept teasing him by licking and kissing the apex of his thighs without touching him where he needed it the most. Klaus growled in frustration and involuntarily bucked his hips. Caroline smiled and she slowly took him in her mouth. Klaus couldn't suppress a moan at the feeling of Caroline's mouth wrapped around his length. The sensation was absolutely exquisite.

Caroline took her time, licking slowly his shaft from the base to the top and twirling her tongue all along it. Klaus gripped roughly the sheets and bit his lips to suppress a growl. This girl was going to be the death of him. The pleasure was increasing by waves with each stroke of Caroline's tongue. She licked mercilessly the oversensitive flesh and Klaus bucked his hips more and more frantically against her mouth. Caroline suddenly increased the pace of her tongue, grazing softly the flesh all along his length. Klaus made a strangle noise as he felt that he was reaching his climax. Feeling how close he was, Caroline slowed down her pace, voluntarily prolonging the exquisite torture she was inflicting on him. Klaus growled when he felt her slowing down, a sound between a scowl and a plea. Tangling his hands in Caroline's hair he bucked his hips against her mouth, careful of not pushing too hard but desperate for his release.

"Caroline, please" Klaus whispered.

He felt Caroline smile against him at his plea and she increased her pace once more, paying a special attention to the top of his length. With one last stroke of her tongue, Klaus came violently, whispering Caroline's name. She rode his orgasm with her tongue until Klaus' body collapsed back on the bed. She then made her way up to him, softly kissing him when she reached his face. Klaus opened his eyes to look at her, his breath shaky and his eyes completely clouded.

"What did I do to deserve such an amazing thing?" he asked out of breath.

Caroline smiled at him earnestly. "You didn't give up on me" she answered simply. "It's my way to show you how happy I am that you waited for me. I hope you liked it" she added nuzzling against him.

Klaus chuckled as he was still trying to recover.

"Liked it? Sweetheart, I think I just died a second time."

Caroline smiled and was about to answer when Klaus suddenly rolled over and pinned her to the mattress with his body. Crushing his mouth against hers, he kissed her hungrily and Caroline sighed in his mouth.

"Now it's my turn to show you how much I care about you" he whispered huskily in her ear. Caroline shivered when he lowered his lips on her breasts making soft circles around her nipple with his tongue. Klaus jumped alternatively from one nipple to another, licking learnedly the sensitive flesh until Caroline writhed under him. He sensually removed Caroline's jeans and thong before letting his hands roam all over her body, savoring the sounds he was eliciting from her. Stroking her flat stomach, he lowered his hands until the apex of her thighs and made slow circles on the soft flesh here. Caroline was shaking against him and her eyes were so full of lust they were almost black.

"Kiss me" she pleaded.

Klaus pressed his lips against hers, ravaging her mouth with his tongue, until he heard her moan. While he was exploring Caroline's mouth, he lowered his hands on her body and slowly brushed her clit. Caroline arched against his hand and cried in his mouth, the sound driving him insane. Sliding a finger inside Caroline, he kept stroking her clit with his thumb and Caroline arched her head against the pillow. She moaned loudly his name, her voice between a plea and a sob. Klaus looked at her in amazement, his own desire suddenly burning him again at the sight of Caroline writhing against his hands. He wanted to make her his. Now. But there was something he needed to do first.

Leaving Caroline's lips, Klaus lazily kissed her body all the way down until her belly button. He then put her legs on each of his shoulders and began caressing her clit with his tongue. Caroline cried at the first stroke, bucking her hips against Klaus' lips. Mesmerized by her reaction, Klaus kept licking her slowly , making the pleasure build up until it was unbearable. Caroline was losing her mind. The pleasure was excruciating. She was so close of the edge that it hurt. Feeling how close she was, Klaus did the same thing that she did to him earlier. He slowed down his pace to prolong the exquisite torture. Caroline moaned when she felt him slowing down, arching desperately against his mouth.

"Please" she begged, "please ,Klaus, I can't take it anymore".

Smirking against her skin, Klaus twirled his tongue against her clit in the exact right spot she needed it and Caroline came violently, crying out in ecstasy as her entire body was shaking against Klaus. She finally collapsed on the bed, completely spent.

Klaus made her way up to her and stroked gently her hair as she was trying to recover. He wanted to let her catch her breath but Caroline wasn't satiated. Attacking his lips with hers she whispered huskily in his mouth.

"I want you. Inside of me. Now"

Klaus didn't need to be told twice. Aligning his body with Caroline's, he softly slid inside her and they both moaned at the feeling. Caroline wrapped her arms around Klaus' neck and her legs around his waist to pull him as close as she could. Klaus leant to kiss her passionately as he started to thrust into her. Caroline raised her hips to meet more of him and Klaus buried his head in the crook of her neck. Klaus tried desperately to go slowly. Being inside Caroline was pure heaven and he wanted to make it last as long as possible. But after a few thrusts he increased his pace against his own will. The desire was painfully burning him and judging by Caroline's frantic moves it was the same for her. Klaus took one of her leg in his hands and put it on his shoulder to deepen his thrusts. Caroline cried at the new angle and she dug her nails in his shoulders.

"Faster" she panted.

Klaus complied and increased his pace one more, slamming roughly against Caroline's flesh. She whispered incomprehensible words in his ear as the pleasure was driving her insane. She urgently gripped Klaus' shoulders, trying not to lose her mind completely by grabbing something strong. She had never felt so totally lost in someone that she couldn't think about anything else except the sensation of his hands and his lips on her. The pleasure was building up so quickly that is was unbearable. Her whole body was on edge and desperately waiting for release. The sight of Caroline so completely lost in him and her beautiful face twisted in pleasure made Klaus' need even more aching. Whispering sweet nothing in her ear, he pounded more and more frantically against her hips, wanting nothing more than hear her cry his name again.

His whole body was set on fire and he couldn't remember have ever felt such a desperate need as he was feeling right now. With a last rough thrust he felt Caroline tighten around him. She cried out his name as she came violently, her whole body shaking with spasms of pleasure and her nails digging in his flesh. Klaus crushed his lips against hers, kissing her hungrily as he stopped holding back and followed Caroline in his release. He felt the waves of pleasure course through his entire body as Caroline helped him ride his orgasm rotating her hips frantically against his. Klaus finally collapsed on her body, out of breath and feeling happier than he had in a lifetime.


	6. Chapter 6

Klaus could have stayed like that on top of Caroline forever, captivated by the sensation of her body under his. But feeling that he was crushing her, he rolled on his side without letting go of his embrace so she rolled with him. Caroline nuzzled against him and kissed his bare shoulder.

"Wow" she mused "it was definitely something!"

Klaus chuckled and kissed her chastely.

"Agreed, love. It was definitively something."

Caroline smiled and sighed happily, wrapping her arms around his chest and tangling her legs with his. Klaus tightened his grip around her and stroked her hair tenderly.

"You have no idea how happy I am right now" he confessed softly.

Caroline pressed a kiss against his chest.

"I am at least as happy as you are, believe me" she ensured. She started to draw slow patterns on his stomach as she seemed suddenly lost in her thoughts.

"I really spent the most horrible night the other day, you know" she said suddenly. "When you asked me to make a choice and then left me alone…" Caroline's voice broke a little and Klaus instinctively stroked her back until she relaxed against him.

"But you were right" Caroline continued "as much as I cried that night, it helped me realize the way I feel about you."

"I would have never thought that you would make a decision so quickly" Klaus admitted in a low voice. "And I would have never thought that you would choose me" he added even more softly. His voice was steady but Caroline didn't miss the hint of insecurity in there. She lifted her head so she could look at him and she cradled his face in her hands.

"As I told you, my choice was made a long time ago. I was just too scared to admit it" she confessed. "I am sorry that I didn't make up my mind earlier. I know it wouldn't have been easy for you to see me with Tyler."

Klaus couldn't help but pull a face.

"No it hadn't been easy" he answered a little dryly.

Caroline leant to kiss him tenderly.

"I'm sorry" she whispered against his lips. "I promise I will make it up to you."

Klaus gave her a wicked impish grin and rolled over to pin her to the mattress. He kissed and nipped at her neck sensually and Caroline sighed.

"What kinds of ideas have you in mind to make it up to me, love?" he asked teasingly in her ear.

Caroline grinned and pulled his face next to hers to kiss him passionately.

"Well I've got a few ideas" she whispered mischievously.

Klaus smiled and answered her kiss with equal passion, reveling in the taste of her lips. He eventually pulled back a little and looked at Caroline, a devilish expression on his face.

"How about I'm the one to choose what I want so I can decide if you made it up to me?" he suggested teasingly. His eyes were burning as he was looking feverishly at her and Caroline couldn't help but shiver under his blazing gaze.

"That could be arranged" she answered a little out of breath.

Klaus smirked and pressed his lips hungrily against hers. He stroked her tongue learnedly with his until he heard moan and felt her body melt against his. He then broke the kiss and Caroline whimpered at the sudden loss of contact. Klaus smiled and pressed another quick kiss on her now pouting lips.

"Let me think about it, sweetheart. What am I going to ask you?" Klaus pretended to think about it as his hands wandered on Caroline's body. She closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of his hands and wanting nothing more than he kept doing this forever. Noticing her well being, Klaus kept stroking her body tenderly, mesmerized by the softness of her skin under his palms. A devilish smile suddenly crossed his face.

"I know what I want" he announced.

Caroline fluttered her eyes open and immediately noticed the smug look on his face.

"What do you want?" she asked a little cautiously.

Klaus kissed her once more and then whispered against her lips.

"I want you to be mine and only mine for the next 72 hours. During three days I will do whatever I want with you. You won't be allowed to leave that room or to talk to anybody else. You will be one hundred per cent mine."

The possessiveness in Klaus' voice made Caroline shiver. Three days all alone with him? Three days of doing whatever he wanted with her? Caroline had a sudden vision of three days of him stroking her skin. Three days of him never stop kissing her. Three days of him ravishing her body. Caroline instinctively arched against Klaus and resumed kissing him feverishly. Klaus growled at her eagerness and hungrily kissed her back until she writhed beneath him.

"I'd take that as a yes?" he asked huskily.

Caroline nodded frantically, refusing to let go of his lips. Klaus complied and deepened the kiss, burying his hands in her soft curls to pull her closer to him. Caroline finally pulled out briefly to take a deep breath.

"I need to send a text to my mum and my friends, otherwise they are going to come on a rescue mission" she whispered.

Klaus nodded and let go of Caroline after a last kiss. Flashing towards her jeans, she grabbed her phone in the pocket and quickly typed a short message about needing some time far away from the current dramas for a few days. After pressing the send button she rushed to the bed, impatient to

snuggle into Klaus' arms again. He immediately wrapped his arms around her and she sighed in contentment.

"Well, I'm all yours for three days" Caroline whispered into his chest.

Klaus rolled over to press his body against hers and kissed her lovingly.

"I love the sound of that, sweetheart" he muttered against her lips.

"So you said I'm not allowed to leave the room but am I allowed to leave the bed?" Caroline asked coquettishly.

"You will be allowed to leave the bed only because I want to try the other furniture" Klaus answered. He kissed her ardently once more, mesmerized but the soft sounds he was eliciting from her.

"I want to try the couch" he heavily murmured against her lips. He moved his mouth along Caroline's jaw and lingered on the soft spot behind her ear "I want to try the desk". His lips traveled until her neck and he pressed them against her pulse point "I want to try the shower" His mouth went back to hers and Caroline moaned when he resumed kissing her.

"What about the armchair?" she whispered in his mouth huskily.

"We can try the armchair too" Klaus approved on the same hoarse voice.

Caroline kissed him again, unable to get enough of his lips.

"And what about the bathtub?" she asked again.

Klaus growled between his hungry kisses.

"Wherever you want, my love."

Caroline gasped and wrapped her legs against his waist, pulling him closer. Klaus kept devouring her mouth but eventually pulled out to look at her.

"So we have a deal, sweetheart? You are mine for the next three days and we will consider then if you have made up to me or not"

Caroline smiled and nodded.

"Absolutely" she approved.

"You have no idea what you are in for" Klaus devilishly whispered. "I'm going to ravish you like nobody ever did. I'm going to make you forget any word which is not my name. Once I'll be done with you, you will be ruined forever for any other man."

Caroline's arousal reached a painful level all of the sudden and she swallowed hard.

"I'm already ruined for any other man" she stated raspily.

Klaus smirked. "Believe me, my love, you haven't seen anything already."

Klaus wasn't lying. She hadn't seen anything already. As breathtaking as their first time together had been, it was nothing compared to what they experienced during the three days. Klaus was not one thousand years old for nothing. He was a master at everything he was doing. He knew how to stroke, how to kiss, how to lick, how to nibble. He was a master at teasing, at making the pleasure build up until it was unbearable. He knew exactly how to procure excruciating pleasure to Caroline to make her beg shamelessly to never stop what he was doing.

Klaus was absolutely determined to ruin her for any other man. Now she was his, there was no way somebody else could put a hand on her ever again. He wanted to make sure that Caroline would never be satisfied by any other man than him. So he decided to play dirty and to use all his skills to make sure Caroline's body shattered in a million different pieces every time he touched her.

Klaus was quick in finding out her greatest weaknesses. After only one day he had made a full mental list of everything able to make Caroline sigh, moan or scream and he was using them shamelessly. Every inch of her body had become familiar to him and every reaction he could elicit from her was printed on his mind.

Caroline couldn't get enough of Klaus, of his lips, of his hands, of his body. There was nothing she liked more than making love to him. The feeling of his body against hers, his comforting weigh on her, his loving hands roaming all over her curves, his strong arms wrapped around her, the sound of his voice moaning her name. There was nothing as good as this. Their bodies seemed to have been created to fit together. Caroline had never felt so connected to anybody else. And when their bodies joined together as one, she felt entirely whole and complete for the first time in her life. Klaus was made for her as she was made for him. Caroline had never experienced so much sweetness and so much passion at the same time. Even in the hottest moments they shared, Klaus remained sweet and tender, always making sure to make Caroline comfortable and at ease, always wrapping an arm around her to make her feel secure and loved. He constantly whispered sweet nothing in her ear, making sure she knew how much he cared about her and how important she was to him.

Caroline was a whimpering mess at the end of the three days. Her whole body was sour and she was sure she could never use her legs ever again. And Klaus was extremely satisfied with himself. "Take that, wolf boy" he thought thinking about Tyler. He highly doubted that the young boy had ever been able to make Caroline feel like he had on the past few days. Klaus propped himself on his elbow and looked at Caroline lay down next to him. She was out of breath from their last embrace and her lips were curled in a smile that had never left her during the previous days. Sliding one of his arms behind her neck and the other one around her hips, Klaus pulled her possessively to him. Caroline snuggled against him and rested her chin on his chest as always.

"I think we can consider that you made it up to me now, love" Klaus chuckled softly.

Caroline smiled then frowned.

"I don't think it's really fair actually you know" she said pensively. "The last three days have been more about me that about you. It should have been the other way around."

Klaus grinned and lifted her chin to kiss her.

"Believe me, my love, I've never been as happy as I've been during the last few days. You can consider that you are forgiven."

Caroline kissed his shoulder.

"I'm glad I'm forgiven but don't worry, I'm still going to prove you every day how much I care about you."

Klaus smiled tenderly. "Happy to hear that, love."

Caroline kissed his shoulder again and they remained silent for a while until Klaus said a little hesitantly.

"You gave me the three days I asked for, what are you gonna do now you are free to go?"

Caroline snuggled against him even closer.

"I don't want to go" she whispered. "I want to stay with you, in your arms. I just spent the most three amazing days in my whole life but I would like to spend more cuddling time. Do you think we can do that?"

Klaus tightened his grip around her and crushed her against him. How could this girl affect him so much?

"We can do whatever you want, my love. I will love to spend more cuddling time with you."

Caroline smiled happily and she eventually drifted into sleep. As always when she was in his arms, she slept peacefully. She woke up the next morning in a happy haze. She was turning her back on Klaus but she could feel him behind her. He had slid his arm between her pillow and her neck to hold her chest and his other hand was tracing lazy patterns on her bare stomach. Caroline grinned and turned into the circle of his arms to face him. Lifting her head, she kissed Klaus lovingly.

"Hi" she whispered against his lips.

"Hi love" he answered back.

Caroline' smile grew bigger.

"I love waking up in your arms" she confessed softly.

Klaus smiled and kissed her again.

"So do I, my love. I have never known something as amazing as waking up next to you."

Caroline hesitated and started to play absent mindedly with his fingers.

"As much as I love being here with you, we are going to have to go out one day you know" she said softly. "I have at least fifty missed calls from my friends and my mother on my cell phone and I have to talk to them."

Klaus tensed a little and involuntarily tightened his grip around her.

"I know you have to. I'm just sorry that you have to go through this because of me."

Caroline frowned and tipped his head down so she looked into his eyes.

"I'm not" she said firmly. "I chose you and I want to be with you. If everybody accepts Elena's choice to be with Damon after everything he did, there are no reasons I can't be with you."

Klaus made a poor smile.

"It's not the same, love and you know it. I don't want you to be torn apart between your friends and me."

Caroline pursed her lips.

"I know the risk" she admitted "but as I said, I made my choice. If they really love me, they will give me a chance. They will give us a chance."

Klaus leant down to give her a passionate and beseeching kiss leaving them both breathless as he wondered what he had done to deserve such an amazing woman who was ready to fight for him. To fight for them.


	7. Chapter 7

The big day had finally came and Caroline was beyond nervous. Today was the day she was telling her friends about Klaus and her. There was another meeting at the boarding house to talk about a new plan to counter Alaric and Caroline had decided to take advantage of the situation. Her friends had pestered her the previous days to know where she was and she knew she couldn't postpone the truth anymore. And she didn't want to. Caroline had taken her decision and she knew she had been right. She wanted to be with Klaus and she wanted that everyone knows about it. No matter what.

She was perfectly aware that things won't be all singing birds and fireworks with Klaus and that they were in for some serious fights. But she was also perfectly aware that he was the only one she wanted to fight with. The only one she wanted to fight for. Caroline was clinging to that thought to keep her calm while she was trying to decide the best way to tell her friends. She couldn't help but feel awfully anxious. Even if she was sure about her decision, she was devastated at the idea of losing her friends. They meant the world to her and the idea of losing them was unbearable.

Klaus was worried. He could see how much Caroline was anxious about talking to her friends and it hurt him to see her so distressed. He hated himself that she had to get through this because of him. He couldn't help but think about what would happen if Caroline's friends decided to turn their back on her. Will she stick with her choice to be with him? Klaus didn't want to imagine how things could evolve between them if Caroline had to lose her friends. Deep down, he was sure that somehow she would resent him and that it would destroy their relationship. Even if it was the hardest thing he ever had to admit, Klaus already knew that if Caroline's friends didn't accept her feelings for him, he would have to let her go. He couldn't bear that Caroline would be unhappy especially if he was the reason of her unhappiness. Her friends meant too much to her so she can be happy without them. Klaus loved Caroline enough to be selfless for once in his life and to have the strength to let her go if it was the only way for her to keep in her life the people she loved.

Klaus threw his book on the couch and left the living room, looking for Caroline. She had gone upstairs a while ago talking about changing her shirt but she didn't come back downstairs yet. Approaching his bedroom, Klaus heard Caroline mutter between her teeth. Puzzled, he slowly entered the room and noticed Caroline in the adjacent bathroom. She was looking at her in the mirror and obviously talking to herself.

"I know it's hard to believe but he is so different with me" she was mumbling. Caroline shook her head. "Too cliché" she said.

"You forgave Damon for everything he had done, why Klaus couldn't have a second chance?" Caroline mumbled again but she shook her head once more. "Too aggressive" she sighed.

"I really feel something strong for him, please don't make me choose between him and you" she tried again but she shook her head for the third time. "Too cheesy" she muttered. Caroline growled in frustration.

Klaus was astounded. She was rehearsing! She was rehearsing what she wanted to say to her friends about them. Despite of the gravity of the situation, Klaus couldn't help but chuckle. How could she be so freaking adorable in EVERYTHING she was doing? So much adorableness should be forbidden, it made him totally weak and whipped.

Caroline heard him chuckle and quickly turned over to face him.

"Nobody had ever told you that eavesdropping is rude?" she asked severely. "And this is not funny" she added a little coldly.

Klaus instantly lost his smile.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I am not making fun of you and even less of the situation. I know how hard it is for you. It is just… You were so adorable, my love, I couldn't help but smile, I apologize."

Caroline's frown disappeared immediately. Closing the gap between them, she slid her arms around his chest and snuggled into him with a sigh. Klaus immediately wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart" he whispered again "You have no idea how much I would like you don't have to get through this."

"I know" Caroline answered against his chest "don't worry, it's gonna be ok."

Klaus hesitated but he finally loosened his embrace on her to take her face in his hands.

"Caroline, I want you to know that if you friends' reaction is really bad, I will move aside. I don't want you to be torn between them and me and I know that you can't be happy without them. So if they don't accept your decision, I will let you go, my love, I promise."

Caroline frowned, her body suddenly frozen against his. And then, without a warning, she rose her hand and slapped him on the face with all her strength. She doubted she had hurt him even a little but his astonished look was enough for now.

"HOW DARE YOU?" she yelled, positively fuming. "How dare you take that decision for me? This is MY decision to make, not yours! How dare you decide if it's better for me to have you or my friends in MY life? How dare you think that I could bear lose YOU? I forbid you to do this, do you hear me Klaus? I FORBID YOU TO DO THIS! I'm the only one to decide what do I want for MYSELF. How can you imagine only for a second that I could let you go after all we have been through together those last months? I want you Klaus, I want to be with YOU, no matter what. What do I have to do so you FINALLY believe me?"

Caroline stopped to catch her breath as every inch of her was boiling with rage. To say that Klaus was dumbfounded was an understatement. He had thought about a lot of reactions to his previous declaration but certainly not this one. She had slapped him. Slapped him. This baby vampire had slapped him, the Original Hybrid straight on his face. And she had yelled at him. Because she didn't want to lose him. Because she was ready to lose her friends for him. For the first time, Klaus truly realized how much Caroline cared about him.

Without a second thought, he flashed toward Caroline and crushed her body against his. Crashing his lips on hers, he kissed her like his life depended on it. Still fuming, Caroline tried to push him away but her strength was no match against his. And anyway, after three seconds of his kiss she felt already dizzy so she gave up and kissed him back passionately.

Klaus eventually broke the kiss to look at her deadly serious.

"I'm sorry, my love" he said sincerely. "You are right, I'm not allowed to take any decision for you. I wanted to do the right thing so you would be happy but I have no right to do it. No more decision for you. I promise."

Caroline nodded. "I'm glad we cleared things out" she answered coldly. "I couldn't bear to be with someone who thinks he knows better than me what is good or not for me."

Klaus humbly nodded.

"Duly noted, sweetheart" he mumbled.

Caroline suddenly smiled.

"Perfect. Now shut up and kiss me" she ordered.

Klaus complied immediately.

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Everyone was gathered in the living room of the boarding house and the ambiance was pretty tense. They had all noticed that Caroline and Klaus had come together in the same car and they were worriedly waiting for an explanation. Especially Tyler seemed ready to burst. Caroline had broken up with him only a few days ago and he hadn't expected to see her here with Klaus. A part of him was still hoping that Caroline will eventually realize that she had been wrong and that's the reason why he didn't tell anything about Caroline and Klaus to the rest of the group.

Caroline nervously cleared her throat. "Well, I would like to tell you something while we are all here" she started a little awkwardly. Since nobody uttered a word she bravely continued.

"As you know, a few months ago Klaus saved me from Ric. I became kind of emotional after this because it reminded me of the werewolves things and what my father did to me."

Caroline's voice shook a little at the end of her sentence and Klaus instinctively put an arm around her waist to comfort her. Everybody froze at his gesture and the silence became even tenser. Caroline took a deep breath and she continued.

"Well, to sum up, Klaus had been there to help me get through this and we had grown closer to each other and now we are together."

Caroline dropped her bomb in a steady voice but her eyes were betraying how worried she was.

The silence was deafening during a few more seconds and then everybody exploded at the same time.

"How can you do that to me?" Elena

"Are you out of your mind?" Matt

"Are you compelled?" Bonnie

"Is it a joke?" Jeremy

"What the hell is wrong with you? " Damon

"You are not serious?" Stefan

Tyler was the only one not to tell anything but his clenched jaw was screaming what he was thinking about all of this.

"Please guys, calm down" Caroline asked desperately and Klaus tightened his grip around her. He was craving to intervene but Caroline had asked him not to so he gritted his teeth.

"I know it's hard to believe but Klaus is really different with me" Caroline tried to explain but Damon cut her off.

"Different? he scoffed "Are you kidding me? He's a mass murderer who put your best friend in the worst miseries for the past year. How can you feel anything for him?" He was looking at Caroline with such disgust that she suddenly blew up.

"How dare you judge me?" she spat. "YOU, between everyone! You, who killed Jeremy. You, who forced Elena to drink your blood before the sacrifice. You, who turned Bonnie's mother into a vampire. How dare you? You are no better than him!"

Elena chose this moment to jump into the conversation.

"Caroline, Klaus hurt me personally! He killed Jenna, he is using my blood to make his hybrids, how can you forgive him after he hurt me that way?"

Caroline clenched his jaw.

"You have short memory Elena" she said a little coldly. "Have you already forgotten what Damon did to me when I was human? The way he used me? The way he compelled me? The way he abused me? And still, you had forgiven him. Where is the difference? Why would you be allowed to forgive Damon for what he did to me and I wouldn't be allowed to forgive Klaus for what he did to you?"

Elena found nothing to answer but Klaus growled extremely dangerously next to Caroline.

"Damon did WHAT to you?" he hissed, his jaw so clenched that he would have broken his teeth if he had been human.

Caroline quickly put a soothing hand on his chest.

"Please, not now" she mouthed to him. "Please."

Klaus gave in to her begging eyes but he threw a glare to Damon meaning crystal clear "this is not over."

Caroline turned to face all her friends.

"Listen. I know Klaus did awful things to all of us and believe me I don't forget it. But what I'm saying is that Stefan and Damon also did pretty bad stuff in their life and everybody seems to forget it. They both killed and tortured and then you trust them. Why could they have a second chance and Klaus couldn't?"

This time, it's was Bonnie's turn to intervene.

"Because they did things to redeem themselves, Caroline. What did Klaus do to prove that he can be trusted as Stefan and Damon can be?"

"I'm going to stop making hybrids" Klaus announced calmly.

Everyone turned to look at him, the same skepticism on their face.

"You give up on your hybrids?" Jeremy asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Because I don't need hybrids when I have Caroline" Klaus simply answered. "I don't need anything but her and I will do anything in my power to make her happy. So I give up on the hybrids and I gave you my word that I won't do anything again against any of you."

"And we are supposed to believe you just like this?" Matt asked, totally unconvinced.

Klaus shrugged.

"I couldn't care less about what you think" he said honestly. "The only thing that I want is Caroline to be happy and she needs all of you so she can be so I'm asking you to give her a chance."

Klaus hesitated and approached Tyler who immediately tensed.

"And I'm going to give this to Tyler" Klaus said, pulling out a little object from his pocket and handing it to Tyler. "It's a talisman. As long as you will have this on you, you won't be sired to me anymore."

Tyler looked at the talisman and instinctively turned to look at Caroline who seemed as astonished as everybody. Klaus noticed her look and smiled to her.

"I have consulted a witch while you were sleeping the other night" he admitted. "In a proof of my good intentions."

Caroline smiled to him and impulsively walked to Tyler to hug him.

"I'm sorry for all I put you through" she said sincerely. "I never had any intentions to hurt you, I hope you know it."

Tyler hesitantly wrapped his arms around Caroline and Klaus gritted his teeth at the view of Tyler's hands on Caroline's body.

"I know" Tyler whispered. "I know, Caroline."

Caroline smiled shyly at him and went back next to Klaus who immediately wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her close to him. The move was as much a gesture of possessiveness as a desire to feel Caroline against him.

Caroline sighed. "We are going to go now" she said a little hesitantly. "All I ask for is, please, give me a chance with my choice. Klaus makes me happy so please think about it before cutting me out of your life. I love you, each one of you and you mean the world to me. I just hope you love me enough to accept my decision."

With a last shy smile, Caroline turned around and exited the living room, Klaus still holding her tightly against him.

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Caroline and Klaus were both silent in the first moments of their ride home. Caroline seemed upset and Klaus was worried about her.

"Are you ok?" he eventually asked gently.

Caroline shrugged.

"I don't know" she admitted "I guess it could have been worse, they could have staked me right away couldn't they? she continued sarcastically.

Klaus made a poor smile. "I'm sorry" he said sincerely.

Caroline smiled sadly to him. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I hope they will understand eventually."

Klaus nodded. "I hope too" he answered.

"Now I have to tell my mum" Caroline sighed. "I think I'm gonna wait tomorrow, what do you think?"

"I think it's a good idea" Klaus approved. "Let's go back to the mansion."

"Could we cuddle on the couch in front of the fireplace?" Caroline asked hopefully.

Klaus grinned. "We can do whatever you want, my love."

Caroline leant to kiss his cheek and went back to look pensively through the window. Klaus noticed that she was deeply lost in her thoughts.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked curiously.

Caroline looked at him and he observed she was blushing a little.

"Well, I was wondering how should I call you in front of my mum" she answered obviously embarrassed.

Klaus frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Caroline cleared her throat.

"My mum is going to ask if we are…in a relationship you know, if we are…exclusive and that kind of stuff. But you are definitely not boyfriend material so I don't know how to tell her about you" Caroline explained, her cheeks redder and redder.

Klaus looked at her, dumbfounded. He would have never expected something like this.

"Why am I not boyfriend material?" he asked a little staggered.

Caroline looked at him incredulously.

"Come on Klaus, you are the all mighty one thousand year old Original Hybrid! You can't be…a boyfriend!" Caroline exclaimed.

"And why is that?" Klaus asked, upset this time.

Caroline sighed in frustration and struggled to find her words.

"Do you really see yourself like someone who can be a boyfriend and have a girlfriend?" she asked.

Klaus took a moment to think about it. Truth to be told, he didn't care about having a label on their relationship. As long as he could be with Caroline, he didn't see the matter to put a name on it. But obviously it was important to Caroline. She needed a word to define them and even if he didn't need it, he could understand it and he had no intention on disappointing her.

"I do" he answered resolutely "No need to torture yourself to find the right word. You are my girlfriend and I am your boyfriend. End of story."

"And of course we are exclusive" he added firmly. "I will tear apart limb by limb any man who will try to put a hand on you."

Caroline looked at him astounded.

"Are you serious?" she squealed in her surprise.

Klaus chuckled at her reaction.

"Deadly, my love. I love you and you are my girlfriend."

Caroline suddenly missed a breath.

"Stop the car" she asked on a strangle voice.

"What?" Klaus frowned.

"Stop the car. Now" Caroline repeated urgently.

Klaus obeyed, suddenly concerned and stopped the car in the side of the road. As he was about to turn to Caroline she rushed from her seat and the next thing he knew she was on his laps, straddling him and hungrily attacking his lips with hers. Klaus made a strangle noise of surprise but Klaus being Klaus, he quickly recovered and wrapped his arms around Caroline's hips, kissing her back feverishly.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" he finally breathed when Caroline pulled away for some air.

"You told you love me" she mused in amazement.

Klaus smiled with a little uncertainty. "I did" he said almost shyly. "I hope you don't mind". Caroline looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"Mind? Didn't you notice that I just made you stop the car in the middle of nowhere to kiss you?"

Klaus grinned and Caroline cradled his face in her hands.

"I love you too, Klaus" she said softly.

Klaus briefly closed his eyes.

"You do?" he asked in a breath.

"I do" Caroline confirmed.

He was about to talk but she resumed kissing him and he decided that focusing on that was a smartest thing to do. She devoured passionately his mouth before lowering her lips in his neck and lingering here.

"Have you ever tried the backseat of this car?" Caroline asked huskily against his neck.

Klaus couldn't help but gasp.

"We are at ten minutes from the mansion, love" he answered hoarsely.

"There is absolutely no way I can wait for ten minutes" Caroline retorted. "Actually, I don't think I can wait for ten seconds. I want you, now."

The second after, Klaus had lay her down on the backseat of the car.

He had always known that he couldn't deny her anything.


	8. Chapter 8

Klaus looked at the time for the hundredth time within the hour. Where the hell was she? She was going to drive him crazy! He should have gone with her or at least have followed her. Klaus impatiently threw his book away and started to pace in the living room as he was trying to dig holes in the floor. He hated the waiting. It made him feel helpless and he wasn't use to it. He shouldn't have listen to her but she was so pissed off at him. Klaus couldn't help but replay their fight in his head once again.

"You are not going" he said firmly to Caroline, making her scoff.

"Excuse me?" she asked angrily.

Klaus knew that if he was remaining that authoritarian, they were in for a big fight so he backed down a little, trying to settle it diplomatically.

"Sweetheart, you know that the members of the council are after you. We still don't know what is going to be their next move. It's not safe for you to wander alone at night. Certainly that bonfire thing is not that important."

Caroline frowned.

"It is important actually, Klaus. Things are just started to back to normal with Elena and Bonnie and I don't want to miss any opportunity to spend time with them. I though you could understand that" she said a little coldly.

"I do understand" Klaus answered in a soothing voice "but certainly you can spend time with them someplace else that in the middle of the wood where you are exposed to any danger?"

Caroline sighed in frustration.

"This is a bonfire, Klaus, where are we supposed to have it? At the Grill?" she asked ironically.

Klaus could feel the anger slowly rising up in his chest. He was not known for his patience and even less when Caroline' safety was in jeopardy. He tried a last diplomatic argument.

"Please, sweetheart, you know it's not safe. You will see your friends tomorrow. Let 's do something together tonight."

Caroline too was making great efforts to keep her calm. She knew that Klaus was worried about her but she couldn't let him decide what the best was for her. She had struggled so hard in the last weeks to impose her feelings for Klaus to her friends and to try to make them accept their relationship. Elena and Bonnie were just beginning to open up to the idea and it was really important to Caroline to go to that party with them.

"I know you mean well but I'm going to the bonfire with my friends tonight, and you can't come because it's a girl's night" she retorted firmly.

Klaus growled in annoyance and finally blew up.

"Stop being childish. You are not going or I'm coming with you" he scolded.

Caroline growled the same way as he did.

"Excuse me?" she hissed. "You don't really think you can actually tell me what to do, do you?"

"I can when you are not being reasonable and when you put yourself in danger" he retorted sharply.

"I am not asking for your permission, Klaus. I am informing you that I'll be out tonight. End of story" Caroline replied angrily. She headed resolutely to the door but Klaus was in front of her in a flash.

"You are not going" he snarled.

Caroline clenched her jaw.

"Let me go. Now." she hissed between her teeth.

She was boiling with anger and Klaus didn't fail to notice it. Hoping to calm her down, he tried another approach.

"Please, my love, stay with me or let me go with you" he almost pleaded.

But Caroline wasn't in the mood to be coaxed.

"You can't mollycoddle me, Klaus. It's not because we are together that you can tell me what to do. I am a big girl and I will take my decisions myself. Stop being so insufferable."

Caroline regretted her words the second they slipped from her mouth. She didn't mean to be harsh and even less wounding. The guilt instantly washed over her when she saw the flash of hurt in Klaus' eyes. She immediately opened her mouth to apologize but Klaus cut her off.

"Very well, Caroline. Do as you wish. I wouldn't like to be a fun killer by being insufferable because I worry about you" he said icily.

With that, he left the room in a flash, slamming the door behind him and leaving a very upset Caroline in the living room. She had never meant to hurt him. The only thing she wanted was that he let her take her own decisions even if he didn't approve them. It was an everyday struggle between them because Klaus was so concerned by her safety that he would have been able to keep her lock in a room if it could ensure her protection. And Caroline couldn't allow that. She needed to have the freedom to do what she wanted even if he was upset with it. It was not their first argument about it but it was the first time things were going so far. She had never let slip something hurtful and neither of them had ever leave the room before they had made up. Caroline debated to know what to do next. She was craving to go after Klaus and to apologize for her sharp words. In another hand, maybe it will be for the best if they had some time apart to think about their argument. After an inner struggle, Caroline finally decided to go to the bonfire and to let things calm down.

Klaus heard the front door slam and he clenched his jaw. She was being unreasonable. She knew that the council was after her but it was so important to her to spend time with Elena and Bonnie that she was ready to put herself in danger. Klaus briefly thought about following her or at least send one of his hybrids to look after her. After a quick internal conflict he finally decided against it. Caroline wouldn't have forgiven him if she had noticed. She had always made perfectly clear that she wouldn't let him take any decision for her. She needed her free will and she was ready to fight for it. Even if it was killing him, Klaus knew he had to accept it if he wanted to keep her trust and her respect. And nothing was more important to him that Caroline's trust and respect.

And now Klaus was here, pacing back and forth and struggling every second with the urge to rush at the bonfire and see if Caroline was ok. He checked his cell phone for the billionth time in the evening but there was nothing. Klaus abruptly spin over when he heard the front door open and a few seconds later Caroline entered in the living room. She was obviously nervous and she was anxiously playing with her fingers. She threw an apprehensive look at Klaus, not really sure about what to do or what to say. Klaus couldn't hold the sigh of relief who escaped his lips when he saw her and the guilt immediately washed over Caroline to see how worried he had been. She made a tiny shy smile to him but Klaus avoided her gaze and Caroline felt her heart clench painfully. She hesitantly approached him, timidly closing the gap between them and trying to make him look at her. When she understood that Klaus had no intentions to move or to talk to her, she slowly slid her arms behind his neck and pressed herself against him. During a few agonizingly long seconds Klaus didn't move an inch and Caroline's heart sank. She didn't dare to plead him to take her in his arms but she was painfully craving his hold. A few tears slipped from her eyes and Klaus felt her distress. With a deep sigh, he finally wrapped his arms around Caroline's waist and pulled her closer to him. Caroline closed her eyes in relief when she felt he was returning her embrace and she clung desperately to his shoulders.

"I'm sorry" she whispered miserably. "I didn't realize you will be so worry. I shouldn't have gone, I had been stubborn, I apologize."

Klaus tightened his grip around her.

"That's fine, love" he whispered back. "You are here and you are ok, that's all that matters."

But Caroline shook her head.

"No, I'm really sorry, Klaus. I had been harsh to you and I had no right. I know you only want my safety and that you do your best to protect me. I shouldn't have gone without you regarding the circumstances with the council. I didn't mean to be wounding or even less to hurt you. Please, forgive me."

Klaus sighed.

"I shouldn't have forbid you to go" he admitted "I know it's the best way to make you do something" he added a little teasingly.

Caroline made a poor smile.

"You are not mad at me?" she asked almost shyly.

Klaus shook his head and stroked tenderly her cheeks, wiping her tears away.

"No, my love, I'm not mad at you. Just don't scare me like this anymore, ok? I know how important it is to you to decide what you want to do but please don't be reckless. I couldn't bear to lose you."

Caroline nodded. "Promise" she murmured. She leant against his chest, savoring the comfort of the muscular arms around her.

"Will you kiss me?" she asked almost pleadingly.

Klaus smiled to her and cradling her face in his hands, he lovingly gave her the kiss she had asked for. As usual, Caroline sighed in his mouth and as usual the sound made Klaus melt. He buried a hand in her soft curls and Caroline clung to his shirt to keep him as close as she could. Klaus eventually pulled away and tenderly stroked her back.

"Did you have fun at least?" he asked.

Caroline shrugged. "Not that much" she admitted.

"Something wrong with Bonnie and Elena?" Klaus frowned.

Caroline shook her head. "No, nothing wrong with them. I just… I hate fighting with you. I thought about our argument all night" Caroline miserably confessed. She hesitated and started to play absent mindedly with the buttons of his shirt. "And I have missed you" she confessed again in a breath. "It seems that now I can't spend an evening without you without missing you" she pitifully explained.

Klaus couldn't help the big grin who crossed his face. "I am delighted to hear it, love" he said cheerfully, making Caroline pout.

"I'm not use to be that dependent of someone" she admitted, the embarrassment obvious in her voice. Klaus smiled and cradled her face in his hands to make her look at him.

"There is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of, sweetheart, I feel the exact same way about you. I miss you as soon as you are out of my sight" he said gently.

Caroline smiled.

"Really?"

"Really" Klaus confirmed.

Caroline buried her head in the crook of his neck and sighed in contentment.

"We had enough conversation for one night" Klaus observed '"let's go to bed, shall we?"

Caroline nodded against his neck and Klaus scooped her in his arms, carrying her towards the bedroom. She disappeared in the bathroom for a quick shower and she slid in her pajamas. When she had first started to sleep at the mansion, she had bought some nice laced nightgowns wanting to please Klaus. But she had quickly found out that he actually liked her even better in her regular short and tank top. And he didn't mind when she slept with one of his shirt either so she had given up on the nightgowns and was regularly borrowing shirts from his closet. Tonight was no exception and Klaus looked appreciatively at her long bare legs showing off from his shirt. Caroline smiled under his gaze and crawled on the bed to snuggle against him. Klaus was bare chest and Caroline tenderly started to stroke the flesh of his stomach. Klaus closed his eyes in enjoyment and Caroline smiled.

"Roll over" she asked softly.

Klaus opened an interrogative eye but complied and rolled on his stomach.

Caroline sat on the back of his thighs and started to massage his broad shoulders. There was nothing she liked more than the feeling of his skin under her hands and she took her time to massage all the area of his back. She started with his neck, using her thumbs to apply the right amount of pressure on the muscles. She then slid her hands towards his shoulders, massaging and stroking at the same time, savoring the feeling of the muscles under her palms. Klaus was positively purring under her hands. He loved nothing more than those moments when she was so lovingly taking care of him, showing him how much she cared about him. Caroline ran her hands along his spine, making Klaus shiver and sigh in satisfaction. Caroline smiled, and leaning towards Klaus she replaced her hands with her lips. She kissed softly his neck, his shoulders and she peppered his whole back with butterfly kisses. Klaus suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to take her in his arms. Slowly rolling on his back, he slid his arms around Caroline's hips and pulled her to him. Caroline eagerly lay down on his chest and snuggled against him.

"Thank you for the massage" Klaus whispered in her ear.

"You're welcome, my love" Caroline answered and Klaus shivered. Caroline was not fond of with pet names but a "my love" was slipping from her lips from time to time and Klaus' heart never failed to jump in his chest every time.

He started to stroke her hair, knowing how much she loved it.

"Hold me tighter" she whispered in his ear. Klaus complied and pulled her even closer to him.

"Tighter" Caroline asked again.

Klaus smiled and tightened his grip around her once more but Caroline insisted.

"Tighter" she asked for the third time.

"I'm going to hurt you" Klaus protested but Caroline shook her head and Klaus obliged, almost crushing her against him.

Caroline sighed in pure delight and buried her head in the crook of his neck.

"This is absolutely perfect, my love" she whispered.

My love. Again. Klaus swallowed as his heart did the usual jumping thing but Caroline was not finished. "I love you" she murmured.

This time, Klaus' heart skipped several beats like every time she was saying those words to him. He still couldn't believe how he had managed to make this extraordinary woman fall in love with him. It was nonsense to him but he wasn't complaining. "I love you too" he whispered back, crushing her even more against him. He felt Caroline smiled against his neck and he kissed the top of her head.

"I would like to fall asleep like this every night" she said in a sleepy voice.

"It's up to you, sweetheart" Klaus stated. "I am more than willing to spend every night of the rest of my life holding you in my arms."

Caroline smiled again in the crook of his neck.

"I'll think about it, my love."


	9. Epilogue

Caroline nuzzled in the big bed, burying herself under the cover and desperately trying to get some sleep. She was turning and tossing in the bed since more than one hour and her eyes still refused to close. Actually, her eyes refused to close since three weeks, which was the moment when Klaus had left.

Kol had gotten himself in a pretty messy situation with a bunch of werewolves in England and he had called Klaus and Elijah for some help. Elijah was already on his way for London and Klaus had taken the first plane he could after his conversation with his brother. Concerned for Kol, Rebekah had wanted to go with him but Klaus had persuaded her to stay with Caroline. He didn't want her to be alone and he had ensured Rebekah that Elijah and him were enough to handle the problem. Rebekah had reluctantly agreed to stay behind but it had been way more difficult to convince Caroline. Klaus had categorically forbidden her to come with him and Caroline had reacted very badly. They had one of their biggest fights about it, but for once Klaus hadn't give in to Caroline.

"It's way too dangerous Caroline" he told very firmly. "Don't you remember what it looks like to be bitten by a werewolf?"

"I'll be with you all the time and you are the cure, what do I risk?" Caroline retorted.

But Klaus determinedly stood his ground and Caroline finally caved when he delivered the supreme argument.

"If you are with me, I'll be more concerned about your safety that about mine or Kol's and we are all going to end up hurt" he said.

Even if Caroline knew that a bunch of werewolves were no match against three Originals, the only thought than anything might happen to him made her back down.

"Ok" she reluctantly accepted. "I'll stay here with Rebekah."

Klaus sighed with relief and cradled Caroline in his arms.

"I'll be careful, sweetheart, I promise" he whispered in her ear. "I won't be gone for long."

Caroline weakly nodded, already knowing that her time away from him was going to be hell. Saying goodbye to him was pretty gloomy. Klaus didn't know for how much time he will be gone and not knowing when he would be back totally distressed Caroline. She clung to his shoulders like she was never going to see him again and Klaus had to remove her fingers from him one by one so she would let him go. He passionately kissed her on last time and after a final "I love you" whispered in her ear he tried to comfort her "You won't even notice I will be gone" he said confidently.

But Klaus couldn't have been more wrong.

Caroline was painfully aware that he was gone and she was miserable since his departure. They were together since almost two years now and it was the first time they were apart from each others. And Caroline found out that she hated it. She hated not being able to kiss him when she wanted to. She hated not being able to snuggle in his arms when she needed to. And most of all, she detested being alone in his giant bed because it made her feel even more alone. She tried to sleep in her old room, in her mum's house but not being at the mansion was actually worst. In Klaus' bed, at least the pillow still had his scent and even if it was a very tiny comfort, it was better than nothing. Caroline was spending every night curled in a Klaus' shirt, trying to find consolation in wearing something that belonged to him.

Caroline sighed in frustration, turning once more in the bed. She had barely slept since Klaus was gone and she was driving crazy with the lack of sleep and with something else too. Before Klaus' departure, she had never fully realized how much she had become dependent to him and how much she was in love with him. They had never spent one night apart from each other since they were together and Caroline was only understanding now, that somehow she had always considered his presence for granted. She had never entirely comprehended until now how much she needed Klaus and his constant presence next to her.

Caroline had always been proud of her independence and of her strength but with Klaus' absence she became conscious that actually, HE was her strength. HE was the one to make her feel so special, so confident and so strong. Without him, she was just miserable. She had always known that she was Klaus fatal weakness but until now, she hadn't fully realized that he was hers. And the thought scared her. How could she be so dependant of one person? How could she need someone so much to be happy?

She hated the mess she had become since Klaus was gone. She hated that she wasn't able to sleep if she wasn't in his arms. She hated the way her whole body was screaming in frustration to not have been touched since three weeks. She hated the way she was feeling cold without his arms around her. She hated the way her whole being was craving for his embrace. How could she have become so whipped? she wondered.

The sound of her phone made her jump in the bed. She rushed into it, desperate to see the name of Klaus displayed on the screen. She merely broke the thing in her haste to pick up when she saw it was him.

"Nik?" she said eagerly on the phone.

Klaus smiled, like every time she was calling him that.

"Hello, my love."

The simple fact of hearing his voice soothed Caroline. She leant on the pillow with a sigh of relief to be connected to him, even if it was only over the phone.

"How are you? How are things progressing?" she asked impatiently.

Klaus sighed.

"We are making some progress" he answered cautiously, not wanting to worry her "but Kol had really managed to piss them off."

Caroline couldn't help the rush of panic that suddenly washed over her.

"Are you sure you are ok?" she asked.

Klaus didn't fail to notice the concern in her voice and he took his most soothing voice to answer.

"Yes, my love. We are all ok, don't worry."

"You promise?" Caroline demanded almost pleading.

"I promise" Klaus firmly responded. "What about you, sweetheart? How are you?"he moved on.

Caroline shrugged even if Klaus couldn't see it.

"I'm fine" she said trying to sound confident but Klaus knew her too well to be fooled.

"No you are not" he stated softly. Caroline shrugged again and tried to change the subject.

"When are you coming home?" she asked, trying not to sound too desperate.

"I don't know yet, sweetheart. I think we're going to need at least another 2 weeks to settle things" Klaus answered, anxious for her reaction.

Caroline's heart clenched painfully and she had to fight the sudden rush of tears who were threatening to fall.

"Another two weeks" she repeated her voice slightly shaking.

Klaus noticed immediately that she was on the verge of tears and he felt his heart sink. He hated when she was upset and even more when he was responsible for it. Knowing that she was distressed and that he wasn't with her to comfort her was killing him.

"I'm sorry, my love. I do my best to accelerate things but Kol has really messed up this time and I'm trying to avoid a war between vampires and werewolves."

Caroline nodded slowly. "I understand" she answered weakly "of course you can't come home before everything is settled."

"Are you mad at me?" Klaus asked softly.

Caroline shook her head. "Of course I am not mad at you" she exclaimed "It's totally normal that you help your brother, how could I be mad?"

She sighed. "It's just that I miss you so badly" she admitted her voice full of tears. "I am miserable without you. I can't even sleep without your arms around me."

Klaus closed his eyes. Hearing her so upset and not be able to take her in his arms was unbearable.

"I miss you too, my love. You have no idea how much. I'm doing as fast as I can, I promise."

"I know" Caroline responded softly "don't worry about me, I'm fine." Once again she was trying to sound confident to prevent him for worrying about her but he was too observant to be taken in.

"I'm doing my best to accelerate thing, I promise" he tried to comfort her.

"I know you do" Caroline answered quietly.

Klaus sighed. "I have to go, my love, I'm sorry."

"Ok, sure. I'm glad you called me" Caroline murmured.

"I'm glad I heard you voice, my love. I will call you again as soon as I can ok?"

"Ok" Caroline whispered weakly. "Be careful. I love you, Nik."

"I love you too."

Caroline hung up the phone and realized that she was crying. Another two weeks without him. How was she going to handle it?

Caroline spent as much time as she could with her friends and Rebekah to prevent for thinking about Klaus every minute. It didn't work entirely but it was better than nothing. She was getting along pretty well with Rebekah now and the two girls were spending more and more time together. It had taken a long time before they really got close mostly because they felt threatened by each others. Once they had finally accepted that Klaus needed both of them in his life to be happy, they had made the effort of bonding. Caroline and Rebekah had actually discovered that they had a lot in common and they had gradually become pretty close. Rebekah was sad to see Caroline so obviously distressed by her brother's departure and she did her best to keep her occupied.

About a week after Klaus' phone call, the two girls decided to go on a shopping spree. The weather was finally becoming pretty nice and Caroline and Rebekah decided that they needed a serious update in the dress and bikini department. 6 hours and a dozen of stores later, the two girls were back at the mansion, with a huge amount of bags.

"You really think Nik is going to like the pink dress?" Caroline asked to Rebekah. "He is not that fond of with pink after all."

"I'm fond of with anything you are wearing, my love" answered an amused voice from the living room. Caroline spin over on her heels so abruptly that she would have fallen if it wasn't for her vampire balance.

Klaus was leaned against the frame of the door, a huge grin in his face and his arms stretched towards Caroline. With a loud squeal, Caroline dropped all her bags on the floor and threw herself in Klaus' arms. He immediately wrapped his arms around her waist and lifting her from the floor, he crashed his lips against hers. Caroline answered passionately to his kiss, her hands tightly fisted in his hair and her body pressed against his as close as she could. As she was melting against him, an overwhelming feeling of relief washed all over her. He was here. She was in his arms again. The waiting was over. Caroline sighed in Klaus' mouth and tightened her grip around his neck, trying to pull him impossibly closer. Klaus was hungrily kissing her, devouring her lips and deposing frantic kisses on her cheeks, her eyes, her forehead, her neck, every inch of skin he could get. He pulled back only when he felt the salty taste of her tears.

Cradling Caroline's face in his hands, he tenderly wiped the tears away.

"Don't cry, my love" he pleaded "you know I can't stand it."

Caroline shook her head. "I'm sorry" she sniffed "you have no idea how much I missed you."

Klaus was about to answer but Caroline leant against him.

"Kiss me" she whispered feverishly "please don't stop kissing me."

Klaus complied immediately, resuming his frantic and passionate kisses on her lips and crushing her against him. Even with her vampire strength she would probably have bruises by the way he was holding her but she couldn't care less. She couldn't be close enough to him. She needed more. She needed to melt in him. Caroline moaned in his mouth and Klaus growled at the soft sound.

Rebekah chose this moment to intervene. She had happily looked Caroline and Klaus' reunion but she felt like she needed to interfere now. They had both obviously forgotten that they were surrounded by people and if nobody reminded it to them they were going to rip their clothes off right here and right now.

Rebekah cleared her throat.

"Nik? Caroline? Get a room!"

Klaus growled at this.

"Hello Rebekah" he muttered against Caroline's neck. "It's good to see you."

Rebekah rolled her eyes and smiled.

"It's good to see you too, Nik but maybe it's best if we talk later. When you won't be wrapped around Caroline anymore for example."

Klaus hummed distractedly, busy to nibble Caroline's earlobe.

Rebekah rolled her eyes again.

"You know what? I am going to leave you alone now" she declared.

Klaus lifted his head for a second and after another kiss on Caroline's lips he approached his sister, Caroline still anchored to him. She allowed him to free one of his arms so he could hug Rebekah but she kept the other one firmly wrapped around her. Rebekah smiled at the sweetness radiating from the two of them and after hugging his brother back she left the room.

Klaus immediately resumed kissing Caroline like he was starving. Never breaking the kiss, he led her until the couch and sat her on his laps, his arms tightly wrapped around her frame. They both lost track of time as they were devouring each other, trying to forget all the frustration and the lack accumulated during the past weeks. Klaus eventually stopped kissing Caroline to stroke her face and to hungrily look at her, as if he was trying to catch up with not seeing her face in more than a month. Caroline smiled lovingly at him and he melted like jelly.

"You have no idea how much I have missed you" he whispered. "I have never missed anyone or anything like I missed you during the past month."

Caroline smiled, feeling the tears coming back in her eyes.

"I terribly missed you too" she confessed softly. "Actually, I have missed you even more than I thought I would." Caroline buried her head in the crook of Klaus' neck, hesitating for a while but finally deciding to keep going.

"Before you departure I still hadn't realize how much I am in love with you and how much I need you next to me every day. Being apart from you made me understand that I completely rely on you to be truly happy."

Klaus' heart skipped a beat at her confession and unable to find the right words to answer to Caroline, he kissed her lovingly, trying to pour all his feeling and his love in his kiss.

Caroline eagerly deepened the kiss, her body suddenly very aware that Klaus' hands had not touched it since more than a month. Klaus was obviously thinking the same thing because his hands became extremely impatient all of the sudden and roamed feverishly all over Caroline's body. She moaned at the feeling and pressed herself against Klaus.

"I want you" she said huskily. "I want you, Nik. Now."

Klaus responded by ripping her top off and by laying them down on the couch.

Just when he was about to resume attacking her lips, Caroline talked again.

"Please promise me that you won't leave me alone that long ever again" she asked in a breathe."

Klaus kissed her.

"I promise you, my love. I won't' leave you ever again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. I'd really like to know what you think about the story, so please let a review to let me know :-)

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading. I would love to know what you think so please let a review, it always makes me very happy :-)


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